5th February 2025
Higher Education and Training Deputy Minister, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, has inspired learners to consider the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges for a important and feasible choice for advancing their professions.

The Deputy Minister was talking for the duration of an oversight visit to the post-school education and coaching (PSET) institutions from the Western Cape this week.

Gondwe explained the TVET colleges as essential 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 Technology (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.

Gondwe's visits aimed at examining the condition of readiness of higher education institutions across the country, in advance on the 2025 academic year.

In the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to take pride in obtaining artisan techniques as they supply fantastic 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, college students at CPUT expressed issues about student residences together with other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily solve the discovered concerns.

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

During the visits, the Deputy Minister has actually been accompanied by critical senior officials click here from Higher Education and Training, and the National website 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 visit.

The problem of funding and administrative worries faced through the NSFAS was within the spotlight throughout the Free State leg of 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 wellbeing and tvet college courses dignity," Gondwe said.

Gondwe embarked on the state of readiness visits following a plan of action, announced by Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane at the special meeting of the Post Education and tvet college courses without matric 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