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Policy Summary
An evaluation of Western Cape Government Transversal Skills Interventions in
supporting Economic Growth and Jobs was conducted for the period 2011- 2014.
The evaluation sought to answer key evaluation questions pertaining to the
mismatch between scarce skills required by key economic sectors in the Western
Cape economy and skills supplied through the skills development interventions of
the Western Cape Government.
In response to the jobless growth of the Western Cape economy and recognizing
that high unemployment is largely a function of lackluster economic development
and that skills development is a strategic imperative in terms of quality labour
supply, the Western Cape Provincial government set Provincial Strategic Objective 1
to address economic development and job creation.
The evaluation of the skills development interventions revealed that two-thirds of
the unemployed in the Western Cape do not have a Grade 12 education yet most of
the skills interventions are targeting Grade 12 and up.
The evaluation also revealed the following:
12 education.
Though Western Cape Government interventions addressed skills needs of
key economic sectors of the Western Cape economy, the challenge remains
how to achieve the right quantum or critical mass in terms of numbers
positive about their training and felt that their employability had improved.
These interventions contributed to employment opportunities for youth.
2
in
the
development
and
execution
of
skills
development
Executive Summary
SAMFA Research Solutions was appointed by the Department of Economic
Development and Tourism (DEDT) to conduct an Evaluation of Transversal Skills
Interventions in Supporting Growth and Jobs. The evaluation was to look at the
extent to which the skills interventions of the Western Cape Provincial Government
during the period 2010 2012 matched the skills requirements of the Western Cape
economy. The evaluation was also to determine the effectiveness of these skills
interventions in supporting Provincial Strategic Objective (PSO) 1.
The primary objective was to evaluate the extent of mismatch between skills
required by key economic sectors of the Western Cape economy and skills supplied
via the Western Cape Government skills development interventions (SDIs), and to
identify areas for improvement. Based on the findings of the evaluation,
recommendations were made to improve the alignment between skills required and
skills supplied.
An Integrated Qualifications Framework was developed by the research team as an
innovative tool to gauge the gap between the supply and demand for scarce skills in
the economy.
The development of the framework involved the following:
1. Determining Scarce Skill - scarce skills was determined by looking at the current
and projected skills requirements of specific sectors as reflected in the Sector Skills
Plans (SSPs) of the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) for the key
economic sectors.
2. Organising Scarce skills - scarce skills were organized using the Organising
Framework for Occupations (OFO - 2013) of the Department of Higher Education
and Training.
The OFO organises scarce skills into 8 occupational groups linked to specific
National Qualification Framework (NQF) levels.
The occupational groups are:
Group1: Managers
Group2: Professionals
Group3: Technicians and Trades Workers
4
Literature Review
Key informant interviews (strategic and operational managers)
Beneficiary Survey
Database / Catalogue
Programme Sheets
1. The
Western
Cape
Government supported
eleven
skills development
interventions between 2010 and 2014 that sought to address scarce skills in
the economy.
2. The largest segment of the unemployed (66%) does not have a Grade 12
education.
3. The transversal skills interventions are designed to achieve employment and
growth.
4. The beneficiaries of the skills interventions programmes were generally
positive about their training and felt that their employability had improved.
5. Skills interventions for the most part were funded by the public sector,
whether the provincial government or the Jobs Fund. No evidence was found
of the private sector providing any form of contribution to the skills
development interventions apart from hosting beneficiaries.
6. These interventions partially helped in resolving identified challenges with
regard to mismatch in supply and demand in that they only addressed a
particular subset of need. For example, many of the programmes enabled
participants to enter the job market at an entry level which prepared them
with a preliminary set of skills. The onus was then on them to find their way
to the higher levels of education.
7. These interventions contributed to employment opportunities for youth in two
ways. Firstly, all the interventions had an on-the-job work experience
components of varying durations. Many of the beneficiaries managed to get
jobs after their training as evidenced in the beneficiary survey where more
than fifty percent of beneficiaries were employed at the time of the interview.
8. With regard to funding models used, all programmes used departmental
funds except for the Artisan Development Programme and the Work and Skills
Programme
that
leveraged
R10.8
million
rand
from
the
JOBs
Fund
administered by the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and cofunding for the Artisan Development Programme from Wholesale and Retail
Trade Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) and the Manufacturing,
Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority
(SETA).
9. The interventions managed to reach the target groups that it sought to
address.
10.The lack of standardized reporting was identified as a key constraint in
reporting on and tracking the effectiveness of the transversal skills
interventions. Part of the problem is that programmes used different
6
definitions when reporting on their outcomes. For example, jobs created could
be interpreted as a job created whilst it could also be interpreted as an
unemployed person placed in a temporary work opportunity.
11.Factors contributing to skills mismatch include ineffective use of readily
available data to inform decision-making, the lack of a Provincial economic
development strategy, lack of clear distinction between internal departmental
skills interventions from those that seek to address scarce skills requirements
of economic sectors, the lack of a standardized reporting framework and the
lack of quantifiable information on sector needs.
12.Factors leading to successful outcomes of skills programmes include
governments interaction with the economic sectors and partnership with the
private sector and NGOs.
13.Challenges and constraints inhibiting achievements were found to include
budgetary constraints, frictions and challenges within industry, the generally
poor caliber of students produced by the secondary schooling system,
shortage of people with mathematics and science qualifications, inadequate
research and planning by government departments, lack of coordination
amongst government departments.
14.The skills development interventions have unintended consequences such as
facilitating entrepreneurial and enterprise development.
Based on the main findings of the evaluation of the skills development interventions
the following recommendations are made:
1. It
is
recommended
that
skills
development
interventions
target
the
quantum of demand.
Each sector group engages the private sector and the NGO.
Each sector group determines what scarce skills at what NQF level and
LIST OF TABLE
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Skills Development Interventions and the Sectors which they Impact......21
Figure 2: Agriculture Scarce Skills.............................................................................28
Figure 3: Supply (SDIs) and Demand of Agriculture Scarce Skills.............................30
Figure 4: Supply (SDIs) and Demand of Construction Scarce Skills..........................32
Figure 5: Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and Business Services Sector Scarce Skills
................................................................................................................................. 33
Figure 6: Supply (SDIs) and Demand of Finance and Business Services Sector Scarce
Skills......................................................................................................................... 37
Figure 7: Manufacturing Sector Scarce Skills............................................................39
Figure 8: Supply (SDIs) and Demand of Manufacturing Sector Scarce Skills.............41
Figure 9: Wholesale and Retail Sector Scarce Skills..................................................43
Figure 10: Supply (SDIs) and Demand of Wholesale and Retail Sector Scarce Skills 44
10
INTRODUCTION
This report evaluates the Western Cape Governments (WCGs) initiative to provide
transversal skills training and development as part of a broader strategy to facilitate
economic growth and employment generation. The report analyses the mismatch
between scarce skills required by key economic sectors of the Western Cape
economy and the skills supplied/supported by the skills development interventions
(SDIs) of the economic cluster departments of the Western Cape Government.
2
In 2011 The Provincial Cabinet set 12 Provincial Strategic Objectives (PSOs) with
PSO 1 Creating an enabling environment for growth and jobs putting jobs
creation and growth at the forefront of the administrations agenda in the Western
Cape.
Skills development would be an important intervention to achieve this objective
and, according to the Provincial Government Budget Office in 2012, an estimated
R442.5 million across 13 government departments was spent on skills and job
training programmes. This amount however includes internal departmental human
resource development and training. There is a need to understand how much was
spent on external human capital development that sought to address skills
demands of the Western Cape economy.
A Provincial Skills Forum (PSF) was set up to coordinate skills interventions. The
PSFs mandate was to ensure a coordinated approach by Western Cape government
departments and entities with regard to the skills development interventions that
sought to reduce the gap between skills supplied and the skills demanded by the
Western Cape economy.
In order for the PSF to execute its mandate the first order of business was to have a
sense of what skills development initiatives funded by the Western Cape Provincial
Government there are and to map their current status quo. One of the key
challenges indicated by the PSF is the absence of a standardized tool that can be
used for needs assessment, intervention planning, implementation, management
and monitoring and evaluation.
The three main purposes of the PSF are:
To provide a mechanism where business, government, institutions
of learning and skills development agencies can collaborate on
skills development and projects, the aim of which will be to ensure
that industry and government are provided with the skills
development interventions;
Facilitating relationships with relevant stakeholders and role-players to
initiate skills development programmes that will address the skills shortages
identified;
Unlocking funding for skills development;
Coordinating institutional arrangements to decrease duplication of HRD
activities and ensure improved impact of provincial skills development
initiatives;
Piloting novel approaches to skills development, flexible to industry needs.
The operational structure of the Western Cape PSF consists of the Premier's
Council on Skills (PCS), the Technical Working Group (TWG) and various Work Groups
(WGs). The Premier's Council on Skills is a consultative forum, responsible for
coordination at a provincial level, and providing strategic leadership and direction,
and facilitating dialogue with and between all social partners and stakeholders. The
Technical Working Group will translate the skills agenda developed by the Premier's
Council on Skills into strategies and practical interventions. The Work Groups are
responsible for implementing the strategic interventions. The overall coordination
and management of the structure is provided by the PSF Team, which is located
within the Department of Economic Development & Tourism (DEDAT).
The
relationships between the PSF and the different stakeholder groups are represented
in the following graphic.
The Forum identified many of the skills areas impacting on the economy that
requires attention:
Information and Knowledge Management skills planning is often
conducted in a vacuum, which impacts the quality of implemented
interventions; therefore the necessity for improved information and data is
critical.
Placement Opportunities for Graduates young graduates often find
themselves in a situation where they cannot find employment due to a lack of
workplace experience. The articulation between linking graduates with
industry will support the graduates to gain the required skills and experience,
and
small
opportunities.
businesses
The
need
need
therefore
to
be
supported
exists
to
explore
to
expand
the
their
challenges
entrepreneurs face and identify ways to strengthen the skillsets within the
arena of entrepreneurs to grow their businesses.
2.2 RATIONALE
The rationale for the evaluation is also informed by the following skills data
challenges;
Most
government
departments
fund
both
internal
human
resource
In summary the rationale for the evaluation is driven by the following four drivers:
1. Multiple levels of possible mismatch in skills supplied vs those needed by the
economy
2. Realities where economic growth will come from in terms of key growth
sectors and the nature of skills required in those sectors. Particularly the need
for labour absorptive growth.
3. Current state of co-ordination of transversal skill interventions.
4. The need to address possible information gaps across the Western Cape
Governments skills programmes.
growth?
What are the sector specific Western Cape government supported skills
interventions
Challenges and risks potentially inhibiting the outcomes of skills development
interventions
Strengthening and making skills development interventions more efficient
and effective
Funding models employed to fund skills development interventions
The role of the private sector and non-governmental sector in skills
development
METHODOLOGY
This section reports on the methodology that was used to execute the evaluation of
the skills development interventions.
The project had the following parameters:
As per the Terms of Reference (ToR) stipulation the project focused on the five core
departments out of the thirteen of the Western Cape Provincial Government
(WCPG). These departments, which are at the centre of the Provincial Economic
Cluster, are:
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
of
of
of
of
of
the
Western
Cape
economy.
Internal
departmental
skills
development
delays and can be used as an example of the lack of basic data on SDIs in the
Province.
The project commenced with a review of existing skills development databases,
relevant literature and project documentation of the economic cluster departments
that was provided via the project manager.
Five key stakeholder / informant interviews were conducted. The key stakeholders
were exclusively senior government officials who were specifically selected by the
Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDT) on the basis of their
specialized knowledge of the transversal skills development interventions of the
Western Cape government. In addition to these interviews, eight programme
manager interviews were conducted with the managers who were responsible for
the skills development initiatives (SDI) which formed part of the current evaluation.
These managers provided the bulk of the data requirements for the project.
A list of the interviewees are given below:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
and Tourism
7. Mr Marius Paulse - Director - Structured Agricultural Training, Department of Agriculture
8. Ms. Rashieda Wentzel Director, Department of Agriculture
9. Ms. Fezeke Rayi Senior Manager, Department of Transport and Public Works
10.Ms. Jessica Katz Department of Environmental Affairs and Development
Planning
11.Ms. Rahiema Loghday Director: Department of Economic Development and
Tourism
A database / catalogue template with key fields was developed to capture the data
responses from programme managers. The data was then recaptured into a
standardized
template,
checked
and
then
recirculated
to
the
respective
information
from
the
key-stakeholder
interviews,
programme
manager
LIMITATIONS
The evaluation had numerous limitations which impacted on the quality of the
results. These are discussed below:
Disparate
data
sources
and
non-standardised
reporting
across
different
The data requirements for the evaluation were primarily collected from the
programme managers managing the various SDIs and could therefore not be
externally corroborated as it was (in most cases) not reported on as individual line
items in the Annual Performance Plans and Annual Reports of the departments
concerned.
One of the key limitations of this evaluation was the fact that the evaluation
questions did not provide for interviews with the private sector as employers of the
beneficiaries of the skills development/training interventions with a view to
understanding the appropriateness and quality of training provided.
The project team was not informed of and did not attend any Provincial Skills Forum
meetings to gain insights into how transversal skills are co-ordinated across
departments and sectors to support job creation and growth.
The service provider team was also not informed of project Khulisa commissioned
by the WCG to look at, amongst other things, key growth sectors in the Western
Cape economy, nor was the team informed of the status of this initiative i.e.
research study, policy position or government strategy. Project Khulisa is set to
determine the future focus of SDIs in the province.
4.2 Delimitations
intervention.
Though the evaluation will be used by the Provincial Skills Forum, this was not
an evaluation of the Provincial Skills Forum.
FINDINGS
evaluation questions.
Answers to the evaluation questions.
Lastly, the role of PSF is examined highlighting its current strengths and
weaknesses. Although an evaluation of the role of the PSF is not explicitly
dealt with in the evaluation questions, it is crucial for the success of the
skills development initiatives in the province and warrants further
investigation.
PROGRAMME
DEPARTMENT
Agriculture Internships
Department of Agriculture
Agriculture External
Bursaries and Scholarships
Department of Agriculture
Department of Agriculture
Department of Agriculture
DTPW Apprenticeship
Programme
Artisan Development
Programme
Premiers Advancement of
Youth (PAY) Programme
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
1. INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME
Programme Description: In the Agricultural Internship Programme, matriculants,
students and graduates get an opportunity to spend a designated period of time at
the Provincial Department of Agriculture and its facilities to get work experience and
exposure to the agricultural sector.
Objective: The objective of the Agriculture Internship Programme is to promote
agriculture as a career opportunity and to provide an avenue for entry into
agriculture as a career path.
Rationale: The rationale for the programme is that interns will gain exposure to
career-pathing, further studies and opportunities within the agriculture sector.
Matriculant interns get exposed to career opportunities in agriculture.
Student
interns serve an internship to complement their studies. This is necessary for them
to complete their studies to graduate. Bursary holder student interns serve vacation
internships whereby they are able to experience the implementation of their
academic learning and build up a relationship with the Department. Graduate
Interns are appropriately placed to apply their qualifications and gain meaningful
work experience in line with their qualification.
Target Group: The target groups for this programme were youth, unemployed
matriculants, agricultural students and graduates.
Sector Needs: Agricultural sector needs were identified via the agriculture sector
skills plan, workforce development plans, platforms and mechanisms that have
been put into place where the government and the private sector engages
regarding industry needs. Agricultural needs were also identified via a series of
sector and sub-sector studies.
This programme addresses sector needs from intermediate (NQF 5-6 - agricultural
technicians, crop produce analysts, livestock inspectors, etc.) to high-level skills
(agricultural scientists, farm and production managers, land degradation analysts,
etc. at NQF levels 7-10).
Qualification level of intervention: Internships spanned NQF levels 5-10 and
covered intermediate and high-level skills as defined by the National Skills
Development Strategy.
Skills Content: The primary content of the programme is exposure and work
experience in the agricultural field.
Nature of Training: The nature of the training varied depending on the type of
internship.
sector work experience making them more marketable and giving them a broader
understanding of the labour market and work ethics.
for
any
field
of
study.
Skills Content: The primary content of the programme is the content of the
respective Honours, Masters and PhD programmes of the Young Professionals.
Nature of Training: The nature of the training is determined by the field of study
of the Young Professional.
Duration: This depends on the requirement of the respective study programme.
Transversal Application: In addition to agriculture, the skills acquired can be
applied in civil engineering, food technology and agricultural economics.
Description:
the
Agricultural
Development
Programme
provides
financial
RURAL
Partnership
assistance
to
for
rural
YOUTH
Rural
youth
Youth
and
farmworker children to complete matric with mathematics and science and for
further studies in agriculture. It also provides internships for unemployed
matriculants without workplace experience from rural areas.
Objective:
The
objective
of
the
Agricultural
Partnership
for
Rural
Youth
For example,
Description:
The
National
Youth
Service
programme
of
the
Department of Transport and Public Works provides unemployed youth with training
and on-site work experience primarily in the construction sector.
Objective: To improve the employability of youth through a combination of training
and workplace activities in the built environment.
Rationale: The rationale is to recruit unemployed youth into a training programme
that enables them to access meaningful work opportunities within the construction
and manufacturing industries.
Target Group: Unemployed youth between the ages of 18 and 35 years with
minimum Grade 8 education.
Sector Needs: The programme addresses scarce skills in the construction and
manufacturing sectors.
10
Sector needs were identified by consulting the scarce and critical skills list of the
Sector Skills Development Plans of the Construction Sector Education and Training
Authority (SETA), the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services SETA,
consulting the Public Works Building programme, municipalities and Workplace
Skills Development plans.
The programme seeks to address the following sector trade needs; qualified
plumbers, carpenters, electricians, bricklayers, welders, etc.
Qualification level of intervention: NQF levels 3 - 5.
Skills Content: The primary skills content of the programme is plumbing,
carpentry, electrical, bricklaying, welding and road works.
In addition to this, there are life skills training to prepare the learners for the posttraining phase and job-readiness.
Nature of Training: Learners are placed with accredited training providers for
theory for a period of 3 months and then placed with building contractors on a
building site for 6 months for on-site work experience.
Duration: 9 months
Transversal Application: The skills are used across the construction and
manufacturing sectors, including the propulsive and employment supporting
sub-sectors;
Green Economy
11
2. MASAKH
PROGRAMME
SIZWE
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
SHORT TERM
Empower
youth
that
are
financially
to
enable
them
to
obtain
12
(b) Create either formal or informal partnership with private sector, NGOs and other
spheres of governing through a bursary collaboration venture.
(c) Pull together resources to maximise and ensure sustainability and continuous
development.
(d) Reduce unemployment rate of the youth by providing in-service training to
bursars while they are studying and employment opportunities to graduates.
(e) Address skills shortages and reduce vacancy rates by creating a feeding pipeline
for filling vacant posts by creating a pool of continuous flowing young talented
registered professionals through professional development training programmes.
(f)
Group:
Historically
disadvantaged
individuals
studying
engineering,
Green Economy
The
programme
seeks
to
address
the
following
sector
professional
and
Duration: Duration varied per higher education institution and was determined
by the respective degree programme and associated professional development
requirements. Also, the programme provides support to the bursar contingent upon
satisfactory performance which will be reviewed on an annual basis for the duration
of the qualification.
Transversal Application:
14
manufacturing sectors.
4. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT
APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMME
AND
PUBLIC
WORKS
16
(SETAs),
career
supported/funded
pathways,
assistance
programmes,
with
apprenticeships
finding
and
bursaries,
internships,
17
course. Thereafter, learners are placed at various host companies for a six month
period where they will receive on the job training from their peers and assigned
mentors. A portion of the learners placed in the host companies undergo further
technical training at relevant accredited training institutions and is partially
subsidised by the Department.
Duration: 6 months
Transversal Application: The life skills, work readiness and employability skills
are used across all sectors. Skills and learnings acquired on the job and during
placement can be used across all sectors.
Description:
The
Artisan
Development
Programme
of
the
18
demand for artisans in all sectors. This need was identified through the decline of
qualified artisans and the sector skills development plans of different Sector
Education and Training Authorities (SETAs).
Sector skills needs addressed are; technicians, riggers, specialist welders, fitter
and turners, etc.
Qualification level of intervention: NQF level 5 and 6
Skills Content: The primary content of the programme is all the Organizing
Framework for Occupations (OFO) trades identified by the Department of Labour.
Nature of Training: The training encompassed competency based modular
training as per trade discipline with work placement.
Duration: 18 months
Transversal Application: The artisan skills are needed by different sectors of
the economy.
Thats what we
SECTOR
Agriculture
20
Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture
Construction and Manufacturing
Construction, Transport, Manufacturing,
Agriculture
Construction and Manufacturing
Construction
According to the programme staff
members the following sectors
participated: Manufacturing, Film,
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO),
Tourism and Hospitality, Wholesale and
Retail.
Artisans are required in all sectors.
Government Services
All sectors identified the need for entrylevel staff to be work-ready.
this
growth.
Within
the
tertiary
sector,
Transport;
Storage
and
Sector which is expected to grow at 3.5% per annum. Wholesale and Retail
Trade growth is forecast at 2.8% with Manufacturing growing at 2.4%. When
we match the SDIs and the skills that they support, the following points can
be made in this regard. Generally, it seems that the Departments are
supporting skills development in the high growth sectors, with the exception
of the Department of Agriculture. However, even though agriculture is
considered to be a low growth sector, its importance to the Western Cape
economy is significant enough for it to be considered a priority sector. The
PERO (2014:33) report makes several important remarks about the
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing sector by stating that (i) Agriculture is
underpinned by a wide diversity of products (ii) the Western Cape has a
comparative advantage in exporting agricultural products compared to the
rest of South Africa and export demand is likely to grow to non-traditional
markets (iii) Agriculture has strong forward and backward linkages to both
the secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy i.e. through the food
and beverage value chain and (iv) agriculture involves inclusive growth and
employment creation since it is primarily located in rural areas and forms an
important economic backbone in many of the Western Capes district
municipalities.
The diagram below depicts the high growth sectors and the propulsive
sectors (i.e. those sectors identified by the Western Cape government as
driving growth and employment creation) with agriculture as a priority
sector. The lines in the diagram show the links between the skills being
developed in the various programmes. It is clear that there is strong
alignment with growth sectors which are represented in the main blocks
while the propulsive sectors are either embedded or to the right of the main
blocks. The arrowheads show the number of programmes addressing a skills
need in the particular sector. This suggests that the SDI interventions are
supporting economic growth and employment in those sectors.
22
Figure 2: Skills Development Interventions and the Sectors which they Impact
23
Table 3
calculated as the total budget allocated to the various SDIs divided by the
number of jobs created by them. It is important to note that this is a
ballpark figure which should be interpreted with caution as there is limited
information available on the cost drivers underlying these figures nor is
there accurate information available on jobs created.
Table 3: JOBS CREATED, COSTS OF PROGRAMMES 2011-2014
PROGRAMME
W&S
ADP
NYS
Masakh Isizwe
Internship
Apprenticeship
Agri Internship
Agri
External
Bursaries
Agri YPP
Agri Partnership
PAY
TOTAL
(R)
21 700 000
16 866 000
3 0991 000
24 000 000
900 000
3 800 000
1 890 000
2667 000
JOBS CREATED
4 068 000
3 700 000
4 000 000
114 582 000
809
228
13
15
1078
The analysis of data further reveals that the mass of the unemployed can be
matched to NQF levels 1- 3, that is, they have less than a grade 12 qualification.
See Table 4 below.
2008 Q1
Number
Share
(000s)
(Per cent)
Total Unemployment
By Race
393
African
Coloured
White
By Gender
161
211
18
41.0
53.8
4.5
Male
Female
By Age
187
206
15 - 24 year olds
25 - 34 year olds
35 - 44 year olds
45 - 54 year olds
55 - 65 year olds
By Education
No education
Grades 0 7
Grades 8 11
Grade 12
Diploma/Certificate
Degree
2013 Q1
Number
Share
(000s)
(Per cent)
100.0
552
Change
Number
Rate
(000s)
(Per cent)
100.0
159
7.0 p.a.*
245
281
44.3
50.9
4.6
84
69
8
8.7 p.a. *
5.8 p.a.
7.4 p.a.
47.6
52.4
293
259
53.0
47.0
105
54
9.3 p.a. *
4.7 p.a.
145
153
58
30
7
36.9
39.0
14.7
7.6
1.8
171
206
108
51
17
31.0
37.3
19.5
9.2
3.1
26
52
50
21
10
3.4 p.a.
6.0 p.a.
13.3 p.a. *
11.1 p.a. *
18.5 p.a.
7
62
198
103
16
3
1.7
15.7
50.4
26.3
4.2
0.9
1
58
302
162
12
13
0.2
10.6
54.8
29.3
2.2
2.3
-6
-3
104
58
-4
9
-33.0 p.a. *
-1.1 p.a.
8.8 p.a. *
9.4 p.a. *
-6.1 p.a.
30.0 p.a.
25
This would suggest that most of the SDIs do not target those
This lack of
alignment is a major contributing factor to the mismatch of skills for the vast
numbers of unemployed.
The data also reveals that roughly 68.3% of the unemployed or 377 000 are
considered youth between the ages of 15 and 35 (according to the official South
African government definition this segment is considered Youth.)
25
of
Occupations
developed
by
the
International
Labour
2. Professionals
3. Technicians and Associate Professionals
4. Clerical Support Workers
5. Service and Sales Workers
6. Skilled Agricultural, Forestry, Fishery, Craft & Related Trades Workers
7. Plant and Machine Operators and Assemblers
8 Elementary Occupations
The above occupational categories correspond with set National Qualification
Framework (NQF) levels.
On the supply side of the Integrated Qualifications Framework the skills
development interventions are also plotted in terms of NQF levels
27
28
services
4.
Manufacturing
5.
Transport, storage and communications
6.
Wholesale and retail trade, catering and accommodation
AGRICULTURE
29
30
2011
9 609
2012
9 860
2 964
2013
10
170
3 072
2014
10
642
3 226
2015
1113
3
3386
2. Professionals
2 873
6 559
6 736
6 951
7 276
7615
1 410
1 448
1 494
1 564
1637
7 553
103
2 183
107
2 239
112
2 309
118
2 415
125
2 526
565
11
672
1 791
1 838
1 895
1 982
2 072
9 578
28
494
131
440
24
25
26
27
528
192
003
223
SCARCE SKILLS LIST: 2011-2016 (Baseline and Projections)
Total
51
414
15
521
35
137
When one compares the demand for agriculture scarce skills across occupational
categories it is clear that the greatest demand is in occupational category Group
1 and 3 i.e. Managers and Technicians and Trades Workers.
The External Bursary Programme, Young Professional Programme, Agricultural
Internship Programme and Agricultural Partnership for Rural Development
programmes by the Department of Agriculture covers the entire spectrum of
Agriculture scarce skills from entry-level to high-level skills.
During the period 2011-2014 a reported 33 jobs were created although an
estimated 369 candidates were beneficiaries.
demand at a national level for these occupations, only a fraction of the national
demand for these occupations is being met. There is currently no data available
for the Western Cape.
In the following diagram the WCG skills development interventions are plotted
against the scarce skills requirements in the Agricultural sector.
31
32
: Su
CONSTRUCTION
33
When
one
compares
the
demand
for
construction
scarce
skills
across
2011
2012
% of
Total
9%
8%
10%
2013
% of
Total
10%
8%
10%
1. Managers
8904
9602
3643
2. Professionals
7826
8546
2984
3. Technicians and Trades
9851
9767
3755
Workers
4. Clerical Support
4726
4742
5%
1440
4%
Workers
5. Service and Sales
550
639
1%
232
1%
Workers
6. Trades Workers
22042
22482
23%
7151
19%
7. Plant and Machine
10640
12600
11%
7896
21%
Operators and
Assemblers
8. Elementary
29713
29372
32%
10554
28%
Occupations
Total
94252
97750
100%
37655
100%
Source - Construction Education and Training Authority (CETA) Sector Skills Plan
Update: 2013/2014
The NYS, Masakh I Sizwe and the Department of Transport and Public Works
Internship and Apprenticeship programmes cover the entire spectrum of
construction scarce skills from entry-level to high-level skills.
During the period 2011-2014 a reported 228 jobs were created although an
estimated 1 259 candidates were beneficiaries.
demand at a national level for these occupations, only a fraction of the national
demand for these occupations are being met.
The following diagram maps the demand for and supply of skills from the SDI
across the spectrum of construction sector scarce skills.
35
36
37
In addition to the scarce skills identified by the Financial and Accounting Services
Sector, the following skills deficit for the Financial Services industry in the
Western Cape was identified:
1. Holistic Skills: The Financial Services industry requires individuals to have
a combination of a good education and technical skills foundation coupled
with process and innovation skills.
2. Financial Services experience and Subsector Knowledge: Financial services
experience coupled with sub-sector experience such as retail banking,
investment banking, insurance, etc., are essential requirements for the
industry.
3. Information Technology Skills: The following IT skills are vital for the
Financial Services industry.
Analyst Developers
COBOL Developers
Information Architects
JAVA Developers
.NET Developers
IT Project Managers
SAP Developers
Software Developers
Systems Architects
Systems Analysts
Systems Developers
4. Specialist Quantitative, Mathematical and Investment Skills. The critical
skills are:
Credit Risk Specialists
Equity Analysts
Fund Managers
Investment Analysts
Investment Bankers
Investment Business Development Managers
Investment Managers
Market Risk Specialists
Mergers and Acquisitions Specialists
Portfolio Managers
Quantitative Analysts
Research Analysts
Risk Analysts
5. Statisticians and data analysis skills: Data analytics have been identified
as a key area for the industry.
6. Actuarial skills: the following skills have been identified;
Qualified and Student Actuaries
Reinsurance Actuaries
Short-term Insurance Actuaries
regulation
Registered Short-term Insurance Actuaries
38
7. Underwriting Skills
8. Sales and Distribution Skills: Skills shortages include;
Financial Advisors including Agents, Brokers and Independent
Financial Advisors
o Heads of Distribution Channels
o
Sales Managers
Broker Consultants
When one compares the demand for finance scarce skills across occupational
categories it is clear that the greatest demand is in occupational category Group
2 i.e. Professionals.
The following table presents current scarce skills at a national level in the
absence of Western Cape data.
39
Number of
people
needed
150
2 860
90
% of total
need
1. Managers
2.Professionals
3.Technicians and Trades
Workers
4.Community and Personal
6
Service Workers
5.Clerical and Administrative
864
Workers
6.Sales Workers
136
7.Machinery Operators and
Drivers
8.Elementary Workers
5
Total
4 111
Source: Fasset Scarce Skills Guideline 2012
3.6
69.6
2.2
% of total
employment
in category*
1.1
9.1
0.9
0.1
0.7
21.0
2.9
3.3
9.1
0.1
100.0
0.1
4.4
During the 2013 2014 period the Work and Skills programme contributed an
estimated 42 jobs to intermediary skilled NQF level 5 jobs spanning occupational
groups 4-7.
categories
and
highlights
addressed.
40
which
skills
are
currently
being
41
to
the
industry
and
who
have
strategic
thinking,
change
42
43
2014
636
406
694
2015
648
413
707
2016
660
420
719
2017
672
428
733
2018
685
435
746
228
532
163
231
541
165
236
551
168
240
561
172
245
571
175
1 188
1 210
1 234
1
258
938
957
974
993
4 786 4 872 4 962
5
056
Source: Manufacturing, engineering and related services SETA (merSETA),
Western Cape Regional Sector Skills Plan October 2013
1 282
1 012
5 151
When one compares the demand for manufacturing scarce skills across
occupational categories it is clear that the greatest demand is in occupational
category Group 7 i.e. Plant and Machine Operators and Assemblers.
The Artisan Development and Work and Skills programme of the Department of
Economic Development and Tourism provides training in NQF levels 5-6 which is
somewhat aligned where the greatest demand is in terms of occupational
categories.
During the period 2011-2014 a reported 807 jobs were created although an
estimated 3 042 candidates were beneficiaries.
demand for occupational category Group 7 for the Western Cape for these
occupations, there seems to be traction in terms of trying to meet the demand
for these occupations. This is reflected in the following graphic.
44
45
46
During the 2013 2014 period the Work and Skills programme contributed an
estimated 21 jobs to intermediary skilled NQF level 5 jobs spanning occupational
groups 4-7.
None of the current WCG skills development interventions addresses scarce skills
requirements in the management and professional occupations and at NQF level
6.
47
Figure 11: Supply (SDIs) and Demand of Wholesale and Retail Sector
Scarce Skills
48
The aforementioned analysis on the demand for and supply of jobs from the SDIs
seems to suggest that the programmes are for the most part supporting scarce
49
skills in the economy. However, there is recognition that the quantum of need for
these skills far outweighs the supply that is provided through the SDIs. Over the
past three years a total of 5 388 candidates were supported in developing scarce
skills in the Western Cape economy across the various sectors.
The economy is constrained by a lack of skills which necessitates creative
interventions. The aforementioned discussion on the impact of the SDI on job
creation and growth shows that the programmes are designed to promote
employment and growth. However, some are better conceptualized in their
design and are more targeted in their approach than others. The key informant
interviews highlighted that those programme managers who regularly engaged
with the private sector and other stakeholders had better outcomes than others.
For example the programme managers for two programmes in the DTPW and
DEDT regularly engaged with a broad spectrum of stakeholders from both the
public and private sectors which shows in the positive response from
beneficiaries attending these programmes. This reinforces the fact that if there is
extensive understanding of the demand for skills in the economic sectors in
which departments operate they are more likely to develop a response that will
improve the acquisition of skills and workplace experience.
50
Table 9: Overview of Key Statistics Pertaining to the SDIs by Programme 2011 -2014
PROGRAMM
E
W&S
ADP
NYS
Masakh
Isizwe
DTPW
Internship
TOTAL
(R)
TYPE OF
QUALIFICATI
ON *
PRACTICAL
WORK
COMPONE
NT
YES
YES
YES
YES
ACCREDIT
ED
NQF
LEVEL
DURATION
YES
YES
YES
YES
5
5-6
3-5
7-10
YES
YES
6 months
18 months
9 months
Duration of
studies
9 months
900 000
35
DTPW
Apprentices
hip
Agri
Internship
3 800 000
77
EC,IC,NC
YES
YES
2-4
1-3 years
1 890 000
196
13
YES
NO
5-10
1 year or
less
Agri
External
Bursaries
Agri YPP
2667 000
114
15
NO
YES
4-10
Duration of
studies
4 068 000
18
HC,
DAC,BD,M,Ph
D
NC, HC,
DAC,BD,M,Ph
D
M,PhD
YES
YES
8-10
3 700 000
41
GC,EC,IC,NC,H
C
NO
YES
1-5
4 000 000
114 582 000
718
5 388
HC
YES
YES
Duration of
studies
Duration of
learnership
and
internship
1 year
PAY
TOTAL
000
000
000
000
TOTAL
JOBS
CREATE
D
809
HC
HC/DAC
IC-HC
AD, BD, M,
PhD
NC
Agri
Partnership
21 700
16 866
3 0991
24 000
NUMBER
OF
CANDIDAT
ES
2 342
700
910
237
228
1 078
51
52
The table shows that the programmes were all accredited and provided a theoretical
and a practical component in their design. Each of the interventions involved the
academic sharing of knowledge in a class-room environment and a practical
component which involved on-the-job experience in the workplace. There seemed
to have been a measure of success in that all the beneficiaries indicated higher
employability and employment after their engagement with the skills development
interventions. For example,
-
were employed.
Sixty one percent of Masakisizwe beneficiaries reported that they were
unemployed before the SDI. After the training 77% of respondents reported
being employed.
Ninety percent of Work and Skills beneficiaries indicated being unemployed
before the training. After the training 65% were employed.
Despite the positive design aspects of the projects, there were a number of factors
than detracted from the efficacy of the programmes which relate primarily to
design. These include: Poor coordination of SDI at the programme level and the
inadequate planning. These issues are discussed in detail in the section dealing with
the target group responses to skills development interventions.
5.2.1
THE TARGET GROUP RESPONSES TO SKILLS
DEVELOPMENT INTERVENTIONS
The next section looks at the target group responses to skills development
interventions. The objective of this section is to:
1. Determine whether the skills development programmes reached their
intended target populations;
2. Provide an evaluation of the skills development programmes from the
perspective of programme beneficiaries.
52
This section deals with seven programmes: the Internships, External Bursaries and
the Young Professionals programme at the Department of Agriculture, the NYS
programme, Masakh iSizwe programme, the Work and Skills programme and the
Premiers Advancement of Youth Programme.
The evaluation of the target group responses to skills development interventions in
the respective programmes is informed by three indicators that were tested with
respondents who were enrolled in the respective skills development programmes.
The first indicator tested the current employment status of programme participants,
employment history and the perception of participants to their employability since
completing the programme. The second and third indicator reports on how
participants experienced the respective programmes.
This assessment report consists of three parts. The first part presents an
assessment of the extent to which skills development programmes reached their
intended target populations. The second part is the assessment as informed by
participants responses to the above stated indicators. The third part provides
concluding comments.
Table 10: Skills development programmes and their intended target
populations
Programme
Agriculture
Internship
Target Population
Unemployed
Matriculants, Higher
Education Agricultural
Students and Graduates
External
Bursaries
Underprivileged youth
studying in agriculture
scarce fields with
preference given to
youth from identified
rural areas.
Young
Professionals
Historically
disadvantaged students
studying in agriculture
scarce skills at Honours,
Masters and PhD levels.
Unemployed
youth
National
Youth
53
Population Reached
Of the 15 participants interviewed, 9
were
unemployed
when
they
received the internship, 13 had a
matric, 14 were Higher Education
agriculture students and 1 Graduate.
All four of the participants reached
were Youth between the ages 20-27
and were studying scarce agricultural
fields: civil engineering (1), civil
design and surveying (1), agricultural
administration (1) and viticulture and
oenology (1).
The one participant reached was
studying towards a Master of Science
Degree in Agriculture.
Service (NYS)
Masakh I Sizwe
Premiers
Advancement
Youth (PAY)
of
From the above table it is clear that all of the programmes, for the most part,
reached their intended target groups.
In what follows is a description of the responses of beneficiaries per department.
Description of Beneficiaries
A total of 20 beneficiaries of this programme completed the survey of which the
greater majority (55%; N=11) were females (Table 11). Although the beneficiaries
were all part of an agriculture programme they indicated to be part of different
programmes. Fifteen of the beneficiaries were agricultural interns, another four
were part of the external bursary programme and one was enrolled in the young
professional programme.
The average age of beneficiaries interviewed was 25 years with the oldest
participant being 38 years and the youngest 20 years. To establish the educational
status of the beneficiaries, individual respondents were asked to identify the highest
level of education that they have completed. The majority of interns (80%, N=12)
54
indicated having completed a qualification higher than Grade 12. For all those
taking part in the external bursary programme (N=4) their highest educational level
was determined to be a degree or diploma. The one participant that took part in
the Young Professional Programme indicated a post graduate Master of Science
degree.
The duration of the skills training programmes differed for the beneficiaries with the
majority of beneficiaries (N=8) being part of a 12 month programme. Another four
were part of an eighteen month programme, three for a few weeks per year and one
for a period of three and a half years. Beneficiaries took part in a range of skills
development programmes ranging from diplomas and degrees. A list of the
programmes is provided in the table below. Reporting on the specific skills they
were taught beneficiaries reported a range of skills of which half related to on-farm
technical skills and the other half to farm management. A list of the specific skills is
provided in Table 14 below.
Table 11: Gender Distribution of Beneficiaries
Skills Development
Programme
Gender
Total
Males
Females
Count
Count
Count
Agricultural internship
15
75
External bursary
programme
Young professional
persons
Total
20
11
20
100
Educational Level
Count
Grade 12
+
Count
Count
Agricultural internship
12
15
External bursary
programme
Young professional
persons
Total Count
14
20
30%
70%
100%
Total %
Grade 12
Total
55
BA social dynamics
External bursary
Programme
Bachelors in Agricultural
Administration
Diploma in Civil
Engineering
National diploma
B. Agriculture
Young Professional
Persons
MSC
External bursary
Programme
Communications, research,
& presentations.
Internship: marketing;
surveying/ designing
Civil design work and
surveying
Winemaking
56
Young Professional
Persons
Time management /
Budgeting
Departments must plan and develop prescribed duties for interns before
interns are placed in departments. In general the department must prepare
administration
Include job placement and job search support in the programme
57
Asked about any negative aspects related to the programmes only 5 respondents
raised some issues, which included the following;
There were some beneficiaries that indicated having had nothing to do during
their internships which they found rather frustrating.
According to some beneficiaries, PAY interns received some remuneration to
cover their costs, which was not the case for all beneficiaries. The fact that
PAY interns had all of their cost covered caused much resentment amongst
other interns.
There seems to be a need to assist beneficiaries in the engineering
programme to register with ECSA (Engineering Council of South Africa). In
order for you to be placed in a job after your training you need to be
registered with ECSA. This is usually such a tedious and drawn out affair that
people just leave or find alternative employment.
Three respondents indicated that the training received was good. Unfortunately no
further information was provided to explain which aspects and in what way the
training was good. All respondents indicated that the programme increased their
employability
Description of beneficiaries
A total of 20 beneficiaries completed the survey. The majority (65%; N=13) of
respondents were male. The average age of beneficiaries interviewed was 26 years
with the oldest being 38 years and the youngest 22 years. To establish the
educational status of the beneficiaries, individual respondents were asked to
identify the highest level of education that they have completed. All but one
respondent, who has an educational level lower than Grade 12, indicated their
highest level of education as Grade 12.
All respondents were part of a nine month training programme. Responding to the
question regarding what skills training individual beneficiaries received, a range of
skills were reported. The skills mentioned included the following, air conditioning,
electrical, bricklaying, road works, plumbing and painting (see Table 15). Asked
58
about the specific skills they were taught all beneficiaries indicated to have learned
specialist skills related to the specific programme in which they took part.
Table 15: Skills Development Programme
Type of Skills Development
Programme
Air conditioning
Count
Electrical
Bricklaying
Road works
Plumbing
Painting
within
this
programme.
Pertaining
to
the
employment
status
of
beneficiaries as at the time of the survey, only six respondents (that is 30%)
indicated to be employed.
Asked about suggestions towards possible improvements for considerations by the
programme managers beneficiaries offered the following recommendations;
practical period.
Include more practical sessions in the work environment, visiting of sites,
59
Beneficiaries had high expectations that the certificate they received at the end of
the training would improve their chances of getting work. However, it turned out
that the training only accounts for some credit towards a N1 qualification. This was
disappointing for beneficiaries since many are not in a position to attain the
additional credits needed for a N1 qualification and to progress from there. There
was also a complaint that beneficiaries did not get feedback on whether they have
been successful or unsuccessful in a specific job application. Beneficiaries also
indicated that they needed assistance to find employment following the training.
One participant requested that male and female beneficiaries should be treated
equally in the training.
Eight respondents indicated that the content and format of the programme was
good. Unfortunately no further information was provided to explain which aspects
and in what way the training was good.
All respondents indicated that the programme increased their employability.
Description of beneficiaries
A total of 18 beneficiaries of this programme completed the survey. The majority
(61%, N=11) of the respondents were female. The average age of beneficiaries is
26 years with the oldest participant being 41 and the youngest 20 years. To
establish the educational status of the beneficiaries, individual respondents were
asked to identify the highest level of education that they have completed. All
respondents indicated to have completed an educational level higher than Grade
12.
The duration of the training programme depending on the diploma and degree
programme they were on and the number of years they received the bursary.
In assessing the different skills training individual beneficiaries received a range of
skills was reported including both technical and soft skills. The technical skills
reported are related to the built environment with soft skills included such as
leadership skills and personal development and staff management. The technical
60
skills were in the fields of civil, electrical and mechanical engineering, building and
construction, architectural design, landscaping and preparation of food crudits.
The matching of industry partners with the study field of the beneficiaries. For
example the different engineering students should be matched with their
When asked about negative aspects of the programmes only five respondents from
the total eighteen, indicated concerns. The first concern mentioned by two
beneficiaries addressed communication between the coordinators of the course and
the beneficiaries. According to the respondents communication with students needs
to be improved. Communication regarding finances seems to be a particular
concern. Another two aspects that probably also relates to communication between
the coordinators and students are (a) an apparent lack of knowledge with regards to
the content and objectives of the progamme, I was not aware of what Masakh
Isizwe was about, and (b) an expectation that an invitation to the awards ceremony
implied that the invitee is to receive an award, Students get invited to awards only
to find out there were no awards for them. Lastly one respondent referred to the
fact that not all students were placed in employment subsequent to the training.
All respondents indicated that the programme increased their employability.
61
Description of beneficiaries
A total of 20 beneficiaries of this programme completed the survey of which the
greater majority 65% were females. The average age of beneficiaries was 27 years
with the oldest participant aged 34 and the youngest 22 years. To establish the
educational status of the beneficiaries, individual respondents were asked to
identify the highest level of education that they have completed. The majority of the
group (75%) indicated having their Grade 12 qualification with four (20%) indicating
having completed a Grade lower than Grade 12. One respondent indicated having
completed a post matric qualification (Table 16).
Table 16: Level of Education Completed
Education
Count
No-matric
20%
15
75%
5%
20
100%
Matric
Matric +
Total
All respondents were part of a six month training programme during which they
took part in skills training. Four took part in programmes that were work force
related, two in programmes related to the tourism and hospitality industry and one
in the wellness, food and beverage programme. Asked about the specific skills they
were taught the majority indicated to have learned skills that can be described as
profession specific. Other skills taught related to people skills including how to
function in the work environment and customer care, time management and life
skills.
Table 17: Skills Training Received
Skills training received
Profession specific skills
Count
12
Life skills
62
Total
19
When asked about any negative aspects to the programmes the following responses
were provided;
63
Description of beneficiaries
The average age of beneficiaries is 21 years with the oldest participant being 33
and the youngest 20 years. To establish the educational status of the beneficiaries,
individual respondents were asked to identify the highest level of education that
they have completed. The whole group (N=20) reported an educational level of
Grade 12.
All respondents were part of a 12 month programme. The majority (75%; N=15) of
beneficiaries received life skills training followed by work readiness training (35%,
N=7) and, computer skills and introduction to government training (20%, N=4).
Other skills taught included administration skills, presentation skills, work ethics,
organising skills, customer care, finance and scanner operating skills.
Table 18: Skills Training Received
Skills
Number
Life skills
15
Work readiness
Computer skills
Introduction to
government
Administration
Presentation skills
Work ethics
Organising skills
Customer care
Finance
Scanner operator
64
When asked about any negative aspects to the programmes only two responses
were received with all other beneficiaries indicating that everything was good. The
one comment related to the perception of one respondent that interns are used for
tasks that permanent staff do not want to do. The other comment relates to the
fulfilment of the course objectives. According to the participant the completion of
learner drivers licenses was part of the stated objectives, an objective that was not
realised.
All
respondents
indicated
that
the
programme
increased
their
employability.
Concluding comments
From the above table it is clear that all of the programmes, for the most part,
reached their intended target groups.
In general the skills development programmes included and evaluated in this report
benefited both males and females between the ages of 20 to 38 years. This is in
line with the focus of the SDIs of developing skills of youth (people aged between 15
and 35 years). Beneficiaries had the opportunity to learn from a number of skills
programmes and were taught a broad range of skills ranging from job specific
technical skills to managerial skills.
The value of the skills learned are clearly shown by the responses of beneficiaries
who responded positively when asked if they deemed themselves employable
following the completion of the skills development interventions by departments.
This response indicates that beneficiaries did not only learn relevant and necessary
65
skills, but following the training are also confident in the value of these skills in
assisting them to first of all find employment and secondly enabling them to do the
work in the area in which they have been trained.
The great majority of beneficiaries indicated to have been employed at the time of
the beneficiary survey and had been placed in employment positions following the
training. There were however others that were unemployed at the time of the
survey. Eight out of 20 beneficiaries in the PAY programme were employed at the
time of the survey. Fourteen out of 18 beneficiaries in the Masakh i Sizwe
programme were employed at the time of the survey.
Twelve out of 20
beneficiaries in the Agriculture programmes and 13 out of 20 in the Work and Skills
programme. The fall-out rate out of employment does seem to be somewhat of a
concern and needs attention. One possible strategy, derived from student
responses, is putting a structure in place that could assist beneficiaries with
applying for a job and securing employment.
Another aspect that seems to be of concern is the apparent lack of planning and
coordination specifically pertaining to interns, in their tasks, functions and
responsibilities. Internships where beneficiaries sit around and do nothing lacks in
value in that it is unproductive for the relevant department and a waste in effort
and time for the beneficiary. All departments need to understand the objectives of
internships and be committed to assisting beneficiaries in gaining the relevant
experience.
In closing, however, it would seem that the programmes are filling an important
function in that it equips beneficiaries with the necessary skills that not only add to
their self-confidence but also leaves them better equipped to enter the job market
(See also Annexure D for beneficiary survey results).
66
5.2.2
MAJOR FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO SKILLS
MISMATCH IN THE WORKFORCE
1. Lack of / in-effective use of readily available and relevant data to inform
decision making
The lack or ineffective use of available data to inform design and development of
skills interventions results in misalignment between supply and demand, lack of
understanding of the quantum of need and an inability to locate a specific skills
intervention within a suite of interventions that span the spectrum of sector needs.
2. Lack of economic development strategy
The lack of a mutually shared and clearly articulated economic development
strategy for the Western Cape results in there not being an overarching framework
that guides and informs the design and development of coherent skills development
interventions.
3. Lack of clear distinction between government resource development
and skills interventions in support of economic sectors
Skills development interventions can be grouped into three classifications. These
are:
1. Internal to government training, capacity building and human capital
development. Including, funding skills development interventions to address
skills shortages in a particular department.
2. Skills development that seek to address skills shortages in a departmental
constituency.
3. Skills development that addresses scarce and critical skills identified by the
economy and key stakeholders in the Western Cape economy.
These classifications can also be used for programming, budgeting and monitoring.
4. Lack of standardized reporting framework
The lack of a standardized reporting framework for skills interventions makes it
impossible to effectively coordinate skills interventions across different government
departments. The integrated qualifications framework can potentially serve as such
a standardized framework.
67
5.2.3
IMPROVING SKILLS DEVELOPMENT
INTERVENTIONS
This section addresses how interventions can be strengthened to make them more
efficient and effective. It is divided into two parts. Part one looks at cross-cutting
issues and part two looks at programme specific interventions.
Cross-cutting interventions
Internal Provincial Government Needs and External Economic Sector
Needs
It is important to distinguish between skills development to address and supply
internal Provincial Government needs and skills development to address external
economic sector needs. Many provincial skills development initiatives have either
explicit or implicit twin objectives of serving both government and sector needs.
This will provide an indication of the size of the need for a particular scarce skills
resource at a provincial level.
Coordination required at point of entry into the labour market
There are a number of state and semi-state role-players in the skills development
arena who are not coordinating their efforts at the point of entry into the labour
market. These role-players are Department of Labour, Department of Higher
Education and Training, Department of Basic Education, FET Colleges, Provincial
Department of Education and Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs).
The Department of Economic Development and Tourism could play a leading role in
this coordination, potentially facilitating coordination amongst all state and semistate role-players through the Provincial Skills Forum which would have to be
additionally resourced.
Improving the quality of Human Capital
Amongst the youth a key problem across sectors has been the quality of the human
capital before they enter skills development programmes. Young people with higher
skills levels and education levels, particularly with Mathematics and Science, will be
68
absorbed more readily than others. This requires intensive intervention at highschool level, prior to individuals coming to the labour market.
Recognition of Prior Learning
Some individuals have extensive work experience prior to starting on a skills
development initiative. However, this experience tended to not be considered in
terms of any formal recognition. The opportunity to have the period of time that the
individual has worked recognized as prior learning and some form of qualification
recognition presents itself. A strategic aspect of the Western Cape Government skills
development interventions should be a drive and investment in recognition of prior
learning.
Education Training Authorities
A key partner to work with has been identified as the education training authorities
because thats where there is a large amount of developmental money for training.
While the Provincial Government has a very good relationship with educational
authorities, there is a sense that this can be more effectively harnessed to access
additional funding for skills development interventions.
Further Education and Training (FET)
Further Education and Training is paramount. There is a recognition there needs to
be interventions at that both legs of FET, grades 10-12 and the phase at FET
Colleges. Interventions in this area will improve the quality of the human capital
that enters post-secondary education skills development interventions.
Curriculum Development
A strategic area for improving skills development interventions is to re-assess
programme content and curricula in relation to sector needs and best-practice.
Private Sector and Non-Government Organisations
A critical success factor for the sustainability of skills development interventions is
partnerships with the private sector and NGOs. The role of the private sector is to
employ and give learner opportunities. The role of NGOs can be to assist in the
financially disadvantaged communities with identifying potential students or
candidates and try and nurture them towards the right direction. In the case of the
PAY programme the Cape Learning Initiative played a critical role as implementing
agent.
Cooperation and Streamlining of WCG skills development Interventions
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70
between
the
different
departments
providing
training
to
the
Given that the graduates of this programme are essentially an Esprit de Corps for
the economy and for the government it is recommended that an element of
prestige be incorporated into the programme. This could take the form of a
partnership with the Private Sector that acknowledges all the graduates of the
programme with an annual awards ceremony.
Work and Skills Programme
Recommendations: The following recommendations are proposed;
1
Extend the duration of the skills and work readiness component and
participants.
The life skills and work readiness component of the course must be
enhanced to more than just a few days and must be augmented with
training in basic core competencies based on entry level jobs in
specific strategic sectors.
72
Longer
departments.
More work readiness modules.
Greater upfront alignment of intern expectations and programme
training
prior
to
placing
students
into
government
programme by the Cape Learning Centre highlighted how the programme can be if
the non-state role players are involved early in the design and development of the
skills intervention.
The private sector is important as providers of on-the job practical work experience.
73
demands
requirements.
Amongst
companies theres
quite
a lot of
fragmentation and competition with skills which then leads to difficulties in saying
what sector needs are (Stakeholder interview).
Short-Term Firm Needs versus Long-term Sector Needs
Another key challenge is the tension between focusing on addressing long-term
sector needs versus short-term firm requirements. At a sector and a firm level,
developing high-level scarce skills requires time and funds. Many companies are
reluctant to trade-off immediate or short-term benefit for long-term firm or sectoral
gains.
Education system
There are major challenges with the education system in that it produces people
who cannot be absorbed into the economy in that the skills the education system is
providing is not good enough or does not meet sector requirements. There is a
disjuncture between what the education system puts out and what the economy
can absorb a skills mismatch. What we produce, is not what the economy wants
exactly.
Quality of Higher Education
There is a concern regarding the quality of education that engineering students are
getting. Given that one of the critical scarce resources are professional engineers
and in order for some-one to become a professional engineer, he / she must have
attended the University of Cape Town (UCT) or the University of Stellenbosch. A
74
qualification from any other institution in the Western Cape will mean that the
individual will either be a technician or a technologist. Both government and
industry needs professional engineers. The problem is that in order for some-one to
get into an engineering programme at a university, the applicant need to get at
least 80 % in mathematics and physics. The chances of getting these grades from a
financial disadvantage home are very slim and its even worse in rural areas
because some schools dont even offer mathematics and physics.
Rural areas
Most rural unemployed do not have the relevant mathematics and science subjects
to qualify for further studies.
The following programme-specific challenges were identified;
Agriculture Programmes
The following challenges were experienced in rolling out the Internships, External
Bursaries & Scholarships, Young Professional Persons and Agricultural Partnership
for Rural Youth Development Programmes.
Most rural and underprivileged matriculants do not have the relevant subjects to
qualify for further studies. Research also indicated that agricultural students and
graduates have no work experience and exposure to the practicalities of agriculture
and actual farming. Rural youth were also found not be interested in agriculture as a
career. For those who were interested, there were limited bursaries and support
mechanisms available. There was also a poor response to available bursaries and
support.
Agriculture Internship: The key challenges experienced by this programme are:
1.
2.
75
6.
7.
8.
effectiveness
of
Young
Professionals
External Bursaries & Scholarships Programme and the Agricultural Partnership for
Rural Youth Development (APFRYD) Programme: The key challenges experienced by
these programmes are:
1. Most rural and underprivileged matriculants do not have the relevant
subjects to qualify for further studies.
2. Making farming and agriculture attractive as career choices to historically
disadvantaged individuals.
3. Encouraging individuals from the rural and traditionally agricultural areas
to pursue agricultural occupations.
Work and Skills Programme: The key challenge experienced by this programme is
the perceived and real mismatches between what companies want in terms of the
skills of the labour force, and what the economy can provide immediately. This
programme is primarily a training programme designed to improve employability
skills as well as competencies of the trainees while in a live work environment.
However, potential employers, because they are productive centres and profit
driven, may not always share the same view, and tend to want someone who is
productive immediately.
Artisan Development Programme:
programme are:
1. The shortage of qualified artisans and trainers to support mass development.
2. The quality of learners exiting FET colleges is very poor.
3. There is not enough focus on competency based modular training (CBMT) and
there is a limited amount of training facilities to cover all trade disciplines.
4. Policies are aimed at promoting academic careers rather than developing
multi-pronged career paths across academic and technical streams.
5. Artisanal skills are still seen as second choice careers.
6. Educational requirements for artisan development supersede the present
educational system. This is due to the increase in technology and the
economies entrance to the global market. The mind-set is to still try and
recruit dropouts to follow artisanal trades.
77
78
79
some cases, serious examination of factors that possibly compromise the success of
its work.
Accurate data was one of the most common issues identified. An associated issue
was the volume of information: one informant said it would be better to receive a
newsletter once a month that provided either a synopsis, a link or key findings,
rather than a depository sitting somewhere with information that very few people
would access.
Cabinet requested the PSF to compile a report from inception to date (this is the
period the DA administration has been in power) but it has been very difficult to put
such data together. This encompasses how many people were trained, how many
people were placed, but as some departments tried to put everything together it
was difficult to see how much of that was a skills programme vs. how much of that
was an FET lead qualification. While this is where the department would want a lot
of its young people to go (or alternately, to university) the numbers on their own
were not seen as a very good indication of the investment in skills. The cost per
person being trained, it was argued, should be cheaper.
Some informants felt there was a lack of clarity on functional relationships and there
was a high degree of change of procedures and practices. The central coordination
of transversal skills was, in the view of some, is not well executed.
The structure doesnt work well for some departments and there is a perception that
the PSF is more internally focused. There were calls for greater management of the
whole process to be given to departments. The PSF should facilitate skills
development in the province on a macro level, involving all sectors and involving all
the departments.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The PSF spans the entire process of the Skills Development Initiative. In so far as its
role as a central, organizing unit is concerned, it should show leadership in the fields
of policy formulation and data collection. In this regard, it should not only be
occupied with the scarcity of skills alone on the demand side but seek measures
that can mediate the supply of lower level skills. In so doing, it can continue to
serve the growth and propulsive sectors while also stimulating demand for those
80
skill levels where unemployment is highest. By striking this balance, it can gradually
lower the rate of unemployment in the province and foster the virtuous cycle of
growth through the circular flow of income, investment and taxation.
This also speaks to the way in which we understand the relationship between
investment, growth and job creation. The belief that the mismatch between skills
supplied and that demanded by industry and business is the main cause of
unemployment may be misplaced. Job creation has, for most of the time since the
industrial revolution, been a function of investment which, in turn, rests on the
prevailing rate of profit. As investors deem the rate of profit in expansion or new
ventures to be less than the risk associated with it, they are less likely to engage in
job creation, even if skills were available. This partly explains high rates of
unemployment in a number of advanced industrial economies where a mismatch
is not necessarily a problem. It would be useful to explore other policy alternatives
such as prescribed assets or stricter regulations on financial markets to stimulate
investment in sectors that are more labour intensive. Moreover, state funded skill
development programmes and placements are effectively a subsidy for businesses
who may use it because it provides additional workers without increasing their wage
bill and not because of a commitment to job creation.
The evaluation of the SDI shows that the mismatch of skills is due in part to the way
information flows between sector representatives, PSF and the programme heads in
departments and how coordination is handled owing to how that information is
understood. Placing the platform for skills development in the DEDAT has distinct
benefits, not least of which is the distinct profile it enjoys but an inter-departmental
group of well-placed officials will do much to achieve higher levels of co-ordination
and information flows. More importantly, it would create the space for such a unit to
jointly formulate an HRD Framework.
An understanding of the relationship between education and unemployment should
be made more important in policy formulation exercises. Informants pointed out
that careers are not made a part of the current curriculum in schools. If the PSF
could do this over an 8 year period it would give students a much better sense of
direction.
81
The
above
report
evaluated
Western
Cape
Government
transversal
skills
interventions in support of growth and jobs. The information utilised to evaluate the
skills development interventions was collected though the following collection
methods:
Literature Review
Key informant interviews (strategic and operational managers)
Beneficiary Survey
Database / Catalogue
Programme Sheets
Western
Cape
Government supported
eleven
skills development
interventions between 2010 and 2014 that sought to address scarce skills in
the economy.
2. The largest segment of the unemployed (66%) does not have a Grade 12
education.
3. The transversal skills interventions are designed to achieve employment and
growth.
4. The beneficiaries of the skills interventions programmes were generally
positive about their training and felt that their employability had improved.
82
5. Skills interventions for the most part were funded by the public sector,
whether the provincial government or the Jobs Fund. No evidence was found
of the private sector providing any form of contribution to the skills
development interventions apart from hosting beneficiaries.
6. These interventions partially helped in resolving identified challenges with
regard to mismatch in supply and demand in that they only addressed a
particular subset of need. For example, many of the programmes enabled
participants to enter the job market at an entry level which prepared then
with a preliminary set of skills. The onus was then on them to find their way
to the higher levels of education.
7. These interventions contributed to employment opportunities for youth in two
ways. Firstly, all the interventions had an on-the-job work experience
components of varying durations. Many of the beneficiaries managed to get
jobs after their training as evidenced in the beneficiary survey where more
than fifty percent of beneficiaries were employed at the time of the interview.
8. With regard to funding models used, all programmes used departmental
funds except for the Artisan Development Programme and the Work and Skills
Programme
that
leveraged
R10.8
million
rand
from
the
JOBs
Fund
administered by the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and cofunding for the Artisan Development Programme from Wholesale and Retail
Trade Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) and the Manufacturing,
engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority
(SETA).
9. The interventions managed to reach the target groups that it sought to
address.
10.The lack of standardized reporting was identified as a key constraint in
reporting on and tracking the effectiveness of the transversal skills
interventions. Part of the problem is that programmes used different
definitions when reporting on their outcomes. For example, jobs created could
83
being
managed
Based on the main findings of the evaluation of the skills development interventions
the following recommendations are made:
1. It
is
recommended
that
skills
development
interventions
target
the
needed for the Western Cape economy. Thereafter this need has to be
quantified.
4. It is recommended that reporting be standardized across departments and
that the same definitions are used by all departments. It is recommended
that both the database / catalogue with its associated fields; and the skills
demand and qualification framework developed by the project team be used
for standardization and reporting.
5. With regard to the Provincial Skills Forum (PSF) the following is
recommended:
Each sector group engage the private sector and the NGO.
The PSF coordinates a number of state and semi-state roleplayers in the skills development arena who are not coordinating
their efforts at the point of entry into the labour market. These
85
Provincial
Department
of
Education
and
Sector
PSF will learn what others are doing in the skills development
arena and will make more informed decisions regarding where it
will focus and channeling of scarce resources.
86
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Provincial Economic Review and Outlook (PERO), 2013
2. Provincial Economic Review and Outlook (PERO), 2014
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