5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has encouraged learners to look at the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges like a precious and practical alternative for advancing their professions.
The Deputy Minister was talking throughout an oversight visit on the post-school education and teaching (PSET) establishments from the Western Cape this week.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as crucial for job creation and youth skills development in the state.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as the Cape Peninsula {University of Technological know-how (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits directed at evaluating the state of readiness of better education institutions across the country, in advance on the 2025 educational year.
In the course of the visit at West Coast College, she inspired learners to get pleasure in obtaining artisan competencies as they offer good entrepreneurship possibilities.
"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 other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to operate with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily take care of the determined challenges.
The Deputy Minister’s visit to the Western Cape, follows western tvet college 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 become accompanied orbit tvet college online application 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 part of the delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on each visit.
The issue of funding and administrative problems faced via the NSFAS was in the spotlight in the Free State leg with 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 buy hygiene products. This is important for their sense of wellbeing and dignity," Gondwe said.
Gondwe embarked on click here 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.
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