Setas challenge accepted
The department of higher education and training has noted the Mail & Guardian report (Billions wasted on Setas funding as skills crisis worsens) alleging that billions have been wasted by sector education and training authorities (Setas).
Once the auditor general has completed the audits and annual reports are tabled, the department will comment fully. In the meantime, however, the assumptions in the article must be addressed.
Minister Blade Nzimande has been forthright in raising the challenges bedevilling the Seta system, especially with regard to governance. A series of systemic reviews have been conducted and a range of interventions put in place.
Since its establishment in 2009, the department has been engaged in the challenge of “building a skilled and capable workforce to support an inclusive growth path”. This necessitated a reorganisation of the Setas to respond to the skills challenges of our country. Twenty-one Setas, each with newly constituted boards, have been functioning since April 1 2011.
The same year saw the introduction of the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS III), which redirected Setas to a new skills development dispensation that focuses them on addressing the scarce and critical skills required by our economy. New Seta grant regulations were published that came into effect in 2013.
Progress is being made in terms of the relevance of Seta programmes. Setas are now allocating 80% of their discretionary funds to pivotal programmes that address key skills needs identified by stakeholders, which will lead to qualifications required by employers for occupations they currently have difficulty recruiting people for. The focus of Seta-funded training has shifted to meet the needs of the economy.
The department convened the National Skills Conference in 2013, attended by the labour movement, business, government and community constituencies. At this conference, progress was noted on the implementation of the National Skills Development Strategy by Setas. This report is available for public consumption.
Many problems remain, but there has been progress. For example, the Setas, working with the department’s artisan development team at Indlela, have increased the number of artisans trained from about 6 000 in 2006 to 15 000 in 2013. These numbers will increase over the next three years, providing vital skills.
As part of promoting public technical and vocational education and training, as directed by the NSDS III, Setas have opened offices in more than 40 college campuses across the country, for a more aggressive linking of education and the workplace.
To ensure that weaknesses are addressed in Seta governance, the minister introduced a standard constitution for Setas, which encourages boards to focus more on strategic issues rather than becoming absorbed in discussing procurement or operational management issues.
We fully accept that there remains a lot to be done to improve the management and impact of the Seta funds available for skills development. The minister and the department will examine the auditor general’s report and act on the findings.
But we must not lose sight of the fact that the context is a skills system that is being radically transformed to address the problems that we are all aware of, and which will take further time to address fully. – Khaye Nkwanyana, media liaison, Department of Higher Education and Training
No one wants to hear Israel’s side
Where do I even begin to describe the hurt and offence caused by Simphiwe Dana’s article Don’t wish the rainbow on Palestine? I grew up in South Africa and live in Israel and I am proud to be an Israeli citizen.
The nasty, accusatory invective contained in this article cuts to the core. I could talk about the disengagement of 2005 when Israel pulled her citizens out of Gaza, including the dead. I could talk about the Palestinians who are slowly starting to talk about how much they blame Hamas for this latest conflict – and how many would love peace with Israel. I could talk about Israelis and how much we want to see a successful and safe neighbour in Gaza, albeit one that is Hamas-free … but all of this would fall on deaf ears.
Dana and her ilk don’t want to hear about the Israeli side, because to her, and sadly many in the world, including the media, we are not dying in appropriate numbers. We Israelis do not qualify as humans. We are monsters, death-mongers.
That is why so much time and effort is spent on vilifying Israel in the media and protesting against us. Often these protests result in violence against Jews. But that is okay. And so is staying silent on the massacre of Syrians or Christians in Iraq.
If people like Dana cared about the people of Palestine, they would be calling for an end to Hamas, which holds them and us hostage. Hamas executed the tunnel diggers and allowed 160 children who assisted with the terror tunnels to die. Hamas executes political opponents. Hamas lynches homosexuals, takes the salaries of hard-working Palestinians, intimidates the press with death threats, allows the flagrant abuse of women and curtails religious freedoms.
Perhaps Dana would fancy a read of the Hamas Charter, a document steeped in hatred. I am sure that, from her comfortable home a continent away, Dana knows far better than those of us who live here. – Rolene Marks, Modiin, Israel