5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has encouraged learners to look at the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges as being a beneficial and viable alternate for advancing their professions.

The Deputy Minister was talking through an oversight visit to your post-school education and schooling (PSET) establishments within the Western Cape this week.

Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as crucial for job creation and youth skills development inside the region.

The Deputy Minister frequented the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, and the Cape Peninsula {University of Technologies (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.

Gondwe's visits aimed toward evaluating the condition of readiness of larger education institutions across the country, ahead of your 2025 educational year.

Throughout the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to consider pride in acquiring artisan skills as they offer excellent entrepreneurship possibilities.

"I'm very encouraged by what I'm seeing at TVET colleges, I believe they are the future of this country. TVETs are producing artisans with much needed skills [and] also offer opportunities for learners to acquire future skills, such as robotics, AI [Artificial intelligence], and coding," Gondwe said.

At the second part of the visit, students at CPUT expressed concerns about here college student residences and also other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the institution to operate with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily resolve the discovered challenges.

The Deputy Minister’s visit to the Western Cape, follows her recent visit to higher education institutions in the Free State where she visited Goldfields TVET College and the Central University of Technology (CUT), at the Welkom campus.

Through the visits, the Deputy Minister website continues to be accompanied by crucial senior officers from Higher Education and Training, and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).

The Deputy Minister’s dedicated Help Desk has also formed part of the delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on each get more info visit.

The difficulty of funding and administrative worries faced through the NSFAS was in the spotlight through the Free State leg on the visits.

"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are paid on time with no delays. Delays cause serious challenges for learners; learners need allowances to eat and to buy hygiene products. This is important for their sense of read more wellbeing and dignity," Gondwe said.

Gondwe embarked on the state of readiness visits following a plan get more info of action, announced by Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane at the special meeting of the Post Education and Training sector held in January 2025, to establish the state of readiness for the 2025 academic year.

The Deputy Minister's oversight is expected to continue in other provinces, with North West higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za