5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has inspired learners to consider the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges being a beneficial and practical different for advancing their careers.
The Deputy Minister was talking all through an oversight visit on the post-school education and education (PSET) institutions inside the Western Cape this week.
Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as important for job creation and youth skills development in the region.
The Deputy Minister visited 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 bigger education institutions across the nation, ahead on the 2025 educational year.
In the course of the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to acquire pride in buying artisan abilities as they provide fantastic entrepreneurship prospects.
"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 fears about student residences more info and also other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily resolve the determined difficulties.
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.
Throughout the visits, the Deputy Minister has actually been click here accompanied by important senior officers from Higher Education and Training, and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
The Deputy read more 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 issue of funding and administrative troubles faced because of the NSFAS was in the spotlight in the Free State leg from the visits.
"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are tvet colleges open for applications 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 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