The B-BBEEA was assented in January 2004 to establish a legislative framework with the aim of directly increasing the meaningful participation of black people in the economy and is binding upon the public sector, particularly governmental departments, public entities or State-owned enterprises and organs of State, including national or provincial departments, municipalities, Parliament, provincial legislatures and public entities.

The B-BBEEA defines ‘black people’ as a generic term which refers to Africans, Coloureds, Indians, and, as of a court decision in 2008, Chinese. The economic empowerment is targeted at women, workers, youth, disabled persons and those in rural areas.  In addition to participation in the economy, the B-BBEEA includes other objectives, such as achieving change in the racial composition of ownership, management structures, and in skilled occupations of existing and new enterprises, and in increasing access to economic activities and skills training for all ‘black’ workers.

The B-BBEEA further establishes a Black Economic Empowerment Advisory Council and authorises the Minister of Trade and Industry to issue codes of good practice in order to promote purposes of the Act. In accordance with Section 10, the codes must be applied by the public sector, thereby inadvertently creating public sector duties which play a role in advancing the constitutional goal for equality of opportunity.