5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has inspired learners to look at the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges being a useful and practical option for advancing their professions.
The Deputy Minister was speaking all through an oversight visit on the post-school education and training (PSET) institutions from the Western Cape this 7 days.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as critical for job creation and youth skills development during the nation.
The Deputy Minister visited the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as Cape Peninsula {University of Know-how (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits directed at assessing the state of readiness of bigger education institutions across the country, forward of the 2025 academic year.
During the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to take satisfaction in buying artisan competencies as they supply great entrepreneurship possibilities.
"I am very encouraged by what I'm seeing at TVET colleges, I believe they are the future of this country. TVETs are producing artisans with much needed skills [and] also offer opportunities for learners to acquire future skills, such as robotics, AI [Artificial intelligence], and coding," Gondwe said.
At the second part of the visit, students at CPUT expressed considerations about student residences along with other services. The Deputy Minister directed the institution to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily resolve the discovered issues.
The Deputy Minister’s visit to the Western Cape, follows her recent visit to higher education institutions in the Free State where she visited Goldfields TVET College and the Central University of Technology (CUT), at the Welkom campus.
During the visits, the Deputy Minister has been accompanied by key senior officers from Higher Education and Training, and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
The Deputy Minister’s dedicated Help Desk has also formed part of the check here delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on each visit.
The difficulty of funding and administrative issues faced from the NSFAS was in the spotlight in the Free State leg of your visits.
"NSFAS needs get more info to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are paid on get more info time with no delays. Delays cause serious challenges for learners; learners need allowances to eat more info and to buy hygiene products. This is important for their sense of wellbeing and dignity," Gondwe said.
Gondwe embarked on the state of readiness visits following a plan of action, announced by Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane at the special meeting of the Post Education and Training sector held in January 2025, to establish the state of readiness for the 2025 academic year.
The Deputy Minister's oversight is expected to tvet college courses without matric continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za