SETAs to opens job opportunities for youth!

More than 107,000 jobs will be opened for the youth by the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs), this are words echoed by Higher Education minister Blade Nzimande on Friday, 4 March.

This follows President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) 2022, which took place last month, as he announced that the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) will place 10,000 unemployed TVET graduates in workplaces as early as from April this year.

According to government these 107, 000 jobs will incorporates of the learnerships, internships and apprenticeships.

Nzimande has engaged with 21 SETAs earlier this week, he urged SETAs to give TVET college graduates work placement so that they can have workplace exposure in order to complete their training.

“Government has already spent vast amounts of money support our youth through the TVET system, and therefore it is important that we assist them to transition to workplace through appropriate placement,” he said.

He presented statistics that the unemployment rate sits at 66,5% for youth between the ages of 15-24.

He further explained that in this cohort over 3,4 million people are unemployed.

For the 2022/23 financial year, Nzimande said that they are targeting 20,500 opportunities for apprentices, 22,500 for artisanal trades, 31,300 for learnerships and 148 000 youth that will enter skills development programmes such as digital skills, crop production and plant production.

He added that, each SETA committed to place no less than 500 TVET learners in workplace.

“Also the AgriSETA is working together with National Skills Fund to place no less than 500 students that come from agricultural colleges, programme and some TVET colleges,” said Nzimande.

“As you know, the year 2020 was seriously affected by Covid-19 adjusted lockdown regulations. 

Our skills system own revenue dropped from our projection of R19.4 billion to R12.4 billion, as a result of the skills levy holiday for employers who contribute the 1% skills development levy,” he said.

He further added that the SETA is resilient despite Covid-19 challenges.

In order for Bank SETA to reskill and upskill workers in the banking sector it has set aside R54 million for 2022/23.

‘’For the past five years (from 2016/17 to 2020/21), SETAs focused amongst others on the delivery of workplace-based learning programmes,” he said.

“Through our SETAs we have created 572 345 opportunities and produced 96 317 artisans with 124 925 learners entering our apprenticeship programmes,” he added.

He explained that the SETAs combined, have placed 44 619 unemployed into learnerships, in that 44 619 over 34 710 where youth below the age of 35-years-old and he announced that over 25 550 were females at the cost of about R1 billion.

He said that in the same period, they placed 9 901 interns, whereby 9 096 where young people below the age of 35 years old and 6 455 were females. The SETAs spent just over R883 million in this regard.

‘’For TVET placement, SETAs placed about 8 539 learners with females at 5 656 at the cost at the total cost of R393 million. For the university placement, SETAs placed 5 183 learners in workplaces at the value of R300 million,” he said.