5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has encouraged learners to look at the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges to be a useful and viable option for advancing their careers.
The Deputy Minister was speaking during an oversight visit into the post-school education and coaching (PSET) institutions during the Western Cape this 7 days.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as vital for job creation and youth skills development from the country.
The Deputy Minister visited the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, plus the Cape Peninsula {University of Technologies (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits aimed at examining the state of readiness of increased education institutions across the nation, in advance of your 2025 academic year.
During the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to consider pride in acquiring artisan competencies as they offer good entrepreneurship opportunities.
"I'm 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 issues about student residences as well as other facilities. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily take care of the determined problems.
The Deputy Minister’s visit to read more 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.
Throughout the visits, the Deputy Minister has long been accompanied by vital 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 get more info the delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on each visit.
The issue of funding and administrative troubles confronted from the NSFAS was while in the spotlight through the Free State leg of the visits.
"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are paid on time with no delays. Delays cause serious challenges for learners; learners need allowances to eat and to buy hygiene products. This is important for their sense of wellbeing and dignity," Gondwe said.
Gondwe embarked on the read more state of readiness visits following a plan of action, announced by Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle here Nkabane at the special meeting of more info 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 continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za