5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has inspired learners to think about the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges as a worthwhile and viable different for advancing their professions.
The Deputy Minister was talking in the course of an oversight visit into the post-school education and education (PSET) establishments during the Western Cape this 7 days.
Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as crucial for job creation and youth skills development within the nation.
The Deputy Minister visited the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as the Cape Peninsula {University of Technologies (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits geared toward assessing the state of readiness of greater education institutions across the country, in advance of your 2025 educational year.
In the course of the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to consider pride in attaining artisan competencies as they provide wonderful entrepreneurship options.
"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 here of the visit, college students at CPUT expressed worries about student residences and various services. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily take care of the recognized 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 read more the Welkom campus.
Over the visits, the Deputy Minister is accompanied by key 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 difficulty of funding letaba tvet college and administrative challenges faced via the NSFAS was inside 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 paid on time with no delays. Delays cause serious challenges read more 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 orbit tvet college online application continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za