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 as being a beneficial and viable different for advancing their occupations.
The Deputy Minister was talking throughout an oversight visit for the post-school education and coaching (PSET) establishments during the Western Cape this 7 days.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as critical for job creation and youth skills development during the place.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as Cape Peninsula {University of Technology (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits aimed toward evaluating the point out of readiness of bigger education institutions across the country, ahead of your 2025 academic year.
Over the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to get satisfaction in acquiring artisan competencies as they offer fantastic entrepreneurship alternatives.
"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 considerations about college student residences as well as other website facilities. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to operate with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily resolve the recognized problems.
The Deputy Minister’s visit read more 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 click here of Technology (CUT), at the Welkom campus.
During the visits, the Deputy Minister continues to be accompanied by essential senior officials 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 education related queries on each visit.
The problem of funding and administrative troubles faced via 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 website 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 read more 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