The country has a number of skills that are in shortage of to meet the increased demands that will help the South African economy and improve from its current state.
It is for this reason, Higher Education and Training Minister Dr. Blade Nzimande emphasised the need to drastically increase the number of qualified artisans produced per year in order to realise the country’s National Development Plan 2030 target.
According to the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), this is amongst the many reasons why there is a continued need for suitably qualified artisans to sustain industries and support economic growth in South Africa.
In the 2023 State Of the Nation Address (SONA) President Cyril Ramaphosa mentioned the following:
The number of students entering artisan training in TVET colleges will be increased from 17,000 to 30,000 in the 2023 academic year.
Towards the end of the 2022 academic year, Nzimande had revealed that South Africa needs at least 60% of school leavers to pursue artisanal type training to meet the country’s demand for scarce skills.
One of the key ingredients for economic growth and competitiveness is the ability to attract skills which the economy needs, said Ramaphosa.
It was almost a decade ago when the DHET declared the year 2014-2024 as the “Decade of the Artisan” to promote artisanship as a career of choice to South Africa’s youth.
The purpose of launching such a campaign was to meet the skills demand to successfully implement the country’s Strategic Infrastructure Projects, which included the building of roads, schools, universities, harbours, power stations and other social and economic infrastructure during the fourth administration.
Ramaphosa has shared that the country will expand its vocational education and training system to produce the skills that the country needs.
According to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges are the vehicle to a new skills revolution.
The government aims to hire at least 20,000 TVET graduates for various work opportunities by 2023, up from a target of 10,000 in 2022.
Engen and the Disability Economic Empowerment Trust have also collaborated in meeting the demand for artisans in the country through introducing a programme for 100 disabled persons to learn how to be artisans.