South Africa is not alone when it comes to skills shortages. Many skills that are in demand in South Africa are in short supply globally. “This has led to a global war for talent,” says finance sector education training authority (Fasset) chief executive, Cheryl James.
Skills shortages are exacerbated by growing economies such as China. These economies have an insatiable appetite for skills. “While the big-four accounting firms in South Africa reported net shortages of about 700 trainees this year, in 2006 it was estimated that China faced a shortage of 300Â 000 accountants,” James informs.
Factors such as an ageing population in developing countries, with insufficient locally trained professionals to keep their economies going; baby boomers, who currently constitute about 42% of the global workforce are starting to retire; and low birth rates in many countries in Europe are further fuelling global skills shortages.
James cites as an additional challenge the fact that South Africa is experiencing an HIV/Aids pandemic. “It is estimated that almost half the deaths in South Africa and 71% of the deaths among those between 15 and 49 are caused by Aids. HIV/Aids has devastated the young and middle-aged populations, people who, strictly speaking, should be filling the skills gaps,” she says.
As for South Africa’s brain drain, James says this is nothing new. “Research has shown that since World War II sizeable numbers of qualified human resources have left South Africa. In fact, since the 1960s Africa has exported more than one Âmillion skilled people to the West,” she says.
One of the positive spin-offs of the intensifying skills shortage is the fact that employers in the Fasset sector (finance, accounting, management consulting and other financial services) are increasingly viewing skills development as a business imperative. “Skills shortages have compelled business to become far more focused on skills development and, as a result, employer participation and input into Fasset’s skills development initiatives has increased. Mandatory grant claim rates serve as an excellent barometer. These have increased from 74% in 2006/07 to 80,4% in 2007/08,” James says.
Skills shortages are compelling stakeholders to find creative solutions to fast-track skills development. “South Africa’s skills challenge emanates from an inadequate schooling system, which does not produce the requisite skills required by our economy. Recognising that Fasset can do nothing at a school level, the organisation is alleviating some of the skills shortages in its sector by funding work readiness programmes for unemployed graduates,” James says.
Fasset has been successful in this regard. “Ironically, while there is a dire shortage of finance and accounting skills, thousands of accounting and finance graduates are unemployed. Employers are often reticent to employ graduates who do not have any work experience as they often lack soft skills, which are pivotal to workplace success. By equipping unemployed graduates with work-readiness skills, they are transformed into an attractive employee proposition. The 90% placement rate of graduates from the ÂFasset-funded Thusanai work-readiness programme attests to this fact,” she observes.
James believes there is considerable scope for other sector education and training authorities to address skills shortages by implementing work-readiness programmes. “At a Âtertiary level there may also be scope to add a work-readiness component to the final year of study. This would ensure that graduates are not only equipped with technical skills, but the requisite soft skills, to enable them to hit the ground running,” she says.