5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has encouraged learners to consider the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges like a valuable and feasible alternate for advancing their careers.
The Deputy Minister was talking all through an oversight visit towards the post-school education and education (PSET) institutions from the Western Cape this week.
Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as important for job creation and youth skills development while in the region.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as Cape Peninsula {University of Engineering (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits aimed at examining the state of readiness of higher education institutions across the nation, forward in the 2025 educational year.
Through the visit at West Coast College, she inspired learners to take satisfaction in buying artisan capabilities as they provide fantastic entrepreneurship opportunities.
"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, college students at CPUT expressed fears about college student residences and various services. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily take care of the recognized problems.
The Deputy Minister’s visit to the Western Cape, follows her recent visit to higher education institutions in the Free State where she get more info visited Goldfields TVET College and the Central University of Technology (CUT), at the Welkom campus.
In the course of the visits, the Deputy Minister has actually been accompanied by critical 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 delegation, assisting with all higher check here education related queries on each visit.
The problem of funding and administrative difficulties confronted because of the NSFAS was from the spotlight in the Free State leg of your visits.
"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are more info paid on time with no delays. Delays click here 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 check here 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 continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za