Learners encouraged to investigate the research options at TVET colleges
5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has encouraged learners to consider the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges as being a valuable and feasible substitute for advancing their careers.
The Deputy Minister was speaking for the duration of an oversight visit towards the post-school education and schooling (PSET) institutions in the Western Cape this week.
Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as crucial for job creation and youth skills development during the region.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, along with the Cape Peninsula {University of Technological know-how (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits targeted at assessing the condition of readiness of bigger education institutions across the country, ahead from the 2025 educational year.
In the course of the visit at West Coast College, she inspired learners to consider pride in acquiring artisan abilities as they offer fantastic 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, students at CPUT expressed worries about student residences together with other services. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily solve the determined problems.
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.
Over the visits, the Deputy Minister has actually been accompanied by critical 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 click here delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries get more info on each visit.
The difficulty of funding and administrative challenges confronted from the NSFAS was while in the spotlight throughout 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 more info 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 website Deputy Minister's oversight is expected to continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions tvet colleges open for late applications being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za