5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has inspired learners to evaluate the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges as being a useful and feasible alternative for advancing their careers.
The Deputy Minister was talking all through an oversight visit to your post-school education and schooling (PSET) establishments inside the Western Cape this 7 days.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as crucial for job creation and youth skills development inside the state.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, along with the Cape Peninsula {University of Technology (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits aimed toward assessing the condition of readiness of higher education institutions across the nation, ahead with the 2025 educational year.
In the course of the visit at West Coast College, she inspired learners to consider delight in acquiring artisan techniques as they supply wonderful 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 concerns about student residences and also coastal tvet college other facilities. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to operate with the Student Representative esayidi tvet college Council (SRC), to speedily resolve the identified concerns.
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.
In the visits, the Deputy Minister continues to be accompanied by crucial 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 more info part of the delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on each visit.
The problem of funding and administrative problems faced through the NSFAS was while in the spotlight in the course of the Free State leg on 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 more info 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 more info 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