EVENTS AND EXHIBITIONS
INCORPORATING COLD CHAIN
One of the drawings the contestants were given to work off. Jorge Valente of OTTC (silver medal winner) working on his water harvester project.
ABOUT WORLDSKILLS success of these projects that a difference
can be made in South Africa.
World Skills International was established
in 1950 as a non-profit organisation, with
the mission to promote and facilitate,
through cooperation and worldwide
awareness, the essential contribution that
skills and competitive standards make to
the achievement of economic success.
Every two years, tens of thousands of
skilled young people from around the
world, accompanied by their teachers,
coaches, and mentors, gather in a
selected city to compete before the
In South Africa, the WorldSkills South
Africa (WSSA) initiative is championed by
the DHET. Even though South Africa has
participated in World Skills International
(WSI) events since 1990, WSSA was formally
established in April 2013 by the deputy
minister of the DHET.
Within the South African context,
participation in the WorldSkills
competition holds huge potential
to influence the development and
employability of the South African
youth. In addition to this, it acts as an
effective vehicle to increasing awareness
of apprenticeships and artisanal skills,
raising the standard of vocational
education and training and artisanal
skills. This initiative also supports the DHET’s
‘Decade of the Artisan’.
The WorldSkills South Africa project and
the Decade of the Artisan campaign,
both championed by the DHET, targets the
continuous expansion of the TVET colleges
sector, particularly artisanal skills. One of
the National Development Plan’s (NDP)
goals is for the country to produce 30 000
artisans per year by 2030. It is through the
COLD LINK AFRICA • May 2019
public in the skills of their various trades
and to test themselves against demanding
international standards.
This year, it’s time to compete in Kazan,
Russia! This 45th WorldSkills competition
will bring together more than 1 300
young professionals (under the age of 22)
representing more than 70 countries, who
will compete in over 50 skills. The event will
be held at the Kazan Expo International
Exhibition Centre, where more than 1 000
experts will evaluate the competitors’ work.
Watch this space!
CLA
www.coldlinkafrica.co.za
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