5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has inspired learners to look at the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges as being a important and practical alternate for advancing their careers.
The Deputy Minister was talking during an oversight visit towards the post-school education and coaching (PSET) establishments from the Western Cape this week.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as critical for job creation and youth skills development in the country.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, and also the Cape Peninsula {University of Technology (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits targeted at assessing the condition of readiness of higher education institutions across the country, in advance from the 2025 educational year.
During the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to acquire satisfaction in obtaining artisan abilities as they provide fantastic entrepreneurship alternatives.
"I'm 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, check here AI [Artificial intelligence], and coding," Gondwe said.
At the second part of the visit, college students at CPUT expressed worries about student residences and other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the institution to work with the Student capricorn tvet college Representative Council (SRC), to speedily solve the determined issues.
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.
During the visits, the Deputy Minister has actually been accompanied by important 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 here all higher education related queries on each visit.
The problem of funding and administrative worries faced because of the NSFAS was during the spotlight during the Free State leg in the visits.
"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student here allowances are paid on time with no delays. Delays cause serious challenges for learners; learners need allowances to eat and to buy hygiene products. website 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