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INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
Future of SA’s SETAs uncertain
The centralising of functions within the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) will help to
address the challenges within the diluted entities. However, Sean Jones, managing director of the Artisan
Training Institute (ATI), says the management and allocation of funds would be critical to guarantee the
SETAs’ sustainability beyond 2020.
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principle, specifically where it relates to
the effectiveness of the SETAs and its
spending of the skills development levy.
According to Jones, merely reducing
SETA numbers will not necessarily result
in improved performance. Performance
of these bodies should be linked to job
creation in the sectors they serve. In
addition, industry should measure SETA
performance based on the levels of
engagement and professionalism of
these bodies.
“The sustainability of the SETAs
relies heavily on funding allocations.
Centralised funding will not redress youth
unemployment, especially if industry isn’t
benefitting from the efforts they put into
training,” he says.
Earlier this year, former Minister Hlengiwe
Buhle Mkhize proposed changes to the
Skills Development Act, referring to a new
policy to restore the SETAs. Consulting
with the National Skills Authority (NSA), the
sector had time to respond to this proposal
until 31 January 2018.
As part of the amendments, the
department highlighted the removal of
the regional SETA offices to create one
central office. This will translate into shared
operational resources such as HR and
information technology.
“A tighter, more streamlined
alignment of the SETAs is a key step in
strengthening them,” says Jones. “This
proposal will be able to predict scarce
skills more easily, but only if industry is
properly consulted — and that’s been
a concern for private sector training
providers in the past,” says Jones.
According to Jones, the department
must delve deep into the consultative
process and engage training providers
and employers across different industry
bodies, including small and medium
enterprises, as the needs are very
different.
“Consultation is critical. It drives
straight into the creation of jobs. If
you are misaligning your focus on skills
development, it affects the ability of youth
to be absorbed into gainful employment,”
he concludes. CLA
R
eform of the SETAs has been on
the cards since 2015 in a bid
to implement the National Skills
Development Strategy (NSDS). Former
Education Minister Blade Nzimande has
been a vocal critic of the management
and administration of the SETAs,
followed by many attempts by the
Department of Higher Education and
Training to restructure them.
In August, the department again called
for public comment on the long-proposed
‘new landscape’ of the SETAs. In the call,
Minister Naledi Pandor gave stakeholders
21 days to respond with comments.
In December 2016, the SETAs were re-
established for two years from 2018 to 2020.
Published in the Government Gazette,
Pandor’s most recent proposal stipulates
four guiding principles for the new life of
the SETAs post 2020.
One, that skills development strategies
should be aligned with national priorities
and an industrial policy framework. Two,
that the SETAs should comprehensively
cover all economic sectors. Three,
that the financial sustainability and
operational viability of the SETAs are
pivotal. And four, that specific SETA
functions are grouped together (the
proposal suggests that the current 21
SETAs would be clustered in 15 groups).
Various spheres of society have
expressed concerns about the third
According to Sean Jones, MD of the ATI, the proposed centralised funding will not redress
youth unemployment, especially if industry isn’t benefitting from the efforts they put into
training.
www.coldlinkafrica.co.za
COLD LINK AFRICA • January/February 2019