Learners urged to explore the study alternatives at TVET colleges
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 being a beneficial and viable substitute for advancing their professions.
The Deputy Minister was talking for the duration of an oversight visit into the post-school education and coaching (PSET) establishments in the Western Cape this week.
Gondwe described the TVET colleges as important for job creation and youth skills development within the region.
The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, as well as Cape Peninsula {University of Technologies (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.
Gondwe's visits aimed toward evaluating the condition of readiness of larger education institutions across the nation, ahead from the 2025 educational year.
In the course of the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to just take pride in attaining artisan abilities as they supply good entrepreneurship possibilities.
"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, AI [Artificial intelligence], and coding," Gondwe said.
At the second part of the visit, students at CPUT expressed issues about college student residences and also other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the institution to website work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily resolve the discovered problems.
The Deputy Minister’s visit to the Western Cape, follows her recent visit to higher education institutions in the Free State where she website visited Goldfields TVET College and the Central University of Technology (CUT), at the Welkom campus.
Over the visits, the Deputy Minister has long been accompanied by vital senior officers from Higher Education and Training, and the motheo tvet college 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 troubles faced 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 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 more info year.
The Deputy Minister's oversight is expected to continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the click here next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za