Question NW2585 to the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

Reply:

The Department is preparing for next year's academic period for higher learning institutions and skills development expansion planning in various ways. The details of preparations are provided below:

1. Enrolments for the 2024 academic year

The enrolment applications for TVET colleges for the 2024 academic year opened on 1 September 2023. All TVET colleges will use online application system to enrol new and returning students. This process will be completed by December 2023. When colleges re-open on 8 January 2024, colleges will go through the final administrative procedures to confirm registration for the admitted new and returning students.

2. Academic calendars for the 2024 and 2025 academic years

The TVET 2024 and 2025 academic calendars have been drafted and will be distributed to colleges by the end of September 2023 to enhance colleges' planning and preparations.

3. Student enrolment numbers for the 2024/2025 academic years

The TVET Colleges Fiscus budget allocation remains constrained over the MTEF and does not align to the envisaged growth trajectory as set out in the National Development Plan to 1.25 million full time equivalent enrolment. It will therefore remain imperative for the Department to apply a capped enrolment to approximately 500 000 TVET enrolments for 2024/25, as the budget does not allow for further expansion. The preliminary TVET Fiscus budget allocation is indicated below:

Draft CoE 2024/25 R'OOO	2024/25 Draft Direct Transfer R'OOO	2024/25 Draft Opex for new Campuses R'OOO	2024125 Draft NSFAS Tuition allocation R'OOO	2024/25 Draft Total allocation R'OOO
7 781 234	3 991 421	444 132	3 054 196	15 270 983

The impact of the latest Public Sector wage increase has a detrimental impact on the overall fiscus position, as the increase in student numbers must be absorbed within the existing baselines. Thus, no additional funding will be received from the National Treasury, which is further limiting any further expansion. Without a drastic budgetary increase into the TVET colleges, expanding access to TVET colleges will be a serious challenge.

4. Strategic planning

All colleges have commenced planning for 2024 enrolment and will submit their strategic and annual performance plans by the end of September 2023 to the Department for the Minister's approval. The department through its institutional support Chief Directorate provides colleges with continuous capacity building support and quality checks the planning documents both during the process of preparation and submission.

5. Expansion of skills provision

Considering the current economic situation and the budgetary constraints faced by higher education in general and the TVET sector in particular, the Minister is urging the Department to consider mobilising the private sector and other development sectors to expand the size and shape of the TVET sector. This growth and expansion strategy focuses on the following four (4) key pillars:

1. Utilising excess physical infrastructure.
2. Digitisation strategy.
3. Responsive curriculum and relevant programme qualification mix (PQM).
4. Mobilisation of the private sector.

The strategy that outlines these key pillars is being finalised. This strategy will be promoted and shared with all key stakeholders.

6. A responsive TVET sector

Since 2018 the Department has embarked on a plan to review and update programmes and qualifications offered at TVET colleges to align them with the needs of the rapidly changing economy and society.

Through monitoring and evaluation of TVET Colleges' strategic plans and PQMs, the Department is trying to encourage college to transition from qualifications that are oversubscribed in the labour market and towards offering those programmes and qualifications linked to priority skills sectors.

TVET Colleges are encouraged to focus on expanding their offering in programmes that support the interventions in the South African Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (ERRP), Occupations in High Demand and those in the Critical Skills lists. These skills are mainly in the Manufacturing/Engineering, ICT, Transportation and Logistics, Tourism and Hospitality, Entrepreneurship and Agriculture.

7. Revision and updating of subject content

The Department has since 2018 updated curricula in at least 60 subjects of the NATED Report 191 programmes covering Engineering, Business and Services studies. The implementation of these revised/updated curricula started in January 2021. At least 10 subjects are identified for revision and update in the current year.

8. Occupations in high demand

The DHET through the Labour Market Intelligence research programme publishes a list of Occupations in High Demand (OIHD) every two years. This list consists of occupations that show relatively strong employment growth or experience shortages in the labour market.

9. Reviewing of learning materials

The learning material for reviewed subjects in the NATED: Farming Management and Mechanisation N6 and those of NCV: IT & Computer Science (Programming and Robotics) L3 will be introduced in January 2024. Currently the review is being screened and will be ready for TVET colleges to start ordering at the beginning of October 2023.

Site evaluations for new programme applications (2024 implementation) have been planned for the month of September 2023 and the outcomes will be communicated in the 1 st week of October 2023.

10. Teaching and learning capacity building

The following measures have been implemented to build capacity of lecturers at TVET Colleges:

A total of 1220 lecturing staff from all TVET colleges have been trained in digital skills to empower them to use a variety of digital methodologies and technologies.

1. The training of lecturers in project-based learning methods in electrical, plumbing, welding and mechanical and the infusion of entrepreneurial skills and culture will continue in 2024.
2. Managers from 22 colleges will be trained to develop plans and strategies for digital transformation of colleges.
3. Fifty (50) lecturers from colleges that have rolled out coding and robotics in NCV will be trained in 2024.
4. Thirty (30) lecturers from colleges that were accredited to roll out the renewable energy technologies in NCV Level 2 (September 2023); Level 3 in January 2024; and Level 4 in June 2024 will be trained in 2024.

The Department is supporting and monitoring colleges in their plans to place lecturers in industry for exposure and upskilling in line with latest industry technologies and practices.

University Education Preparation for 2024 academic year.

In preparation for 2024 academic year the Department of Higher Education and Training (the Department) has planned a series of engagements with relevant stakeholders including University Registrars, Finance Executives, the South African Union of Students and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). The purpose is to discuss the preparedness of universities for the 2024 registration and start of the academic year.

In addition, the Department has designed a questionnaire to be completed by universities at the start of the registration period which will serve as a baseline for data collection. This will provide an opportunity to identify key areas requiring national intervention, and to see where specific support may be required.

The Director-General requested the Department to adopt a different approach in ensuring effective monitoring of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in relation to their preparedness for 2024 academic year. It is planned that during registration the Department will visit all twenty-six universities as part of the monitoring approach. The purpose is to assess the activities on the ground across all institutions to ascertain whether the registration processes are proceeding as planned or if a sector approach is required to deal with any matters needing immediate attention. The exercise will also provide an opportunity to deal with campus-based matters.

Across the sector, there continues to be growing demand for university places, as more students qualify for admission to universities and there are limited spaces to accommodate all students that have applied. The Department has made the Central Applications Clearing House (CACH) available to prospective students who have not been able to secure a study space at a university or TVET College. The prospective student signs up on the CACH Portal by visiting https://cach.cas.ac.za.  Once the prospective student has successfully signed or automatically loaded on to CACH an email is sent confirming them of the signup. Where places exist and prospective students meet the requirements, institutions make offers to them through the CACH system and contact them directly once they have accepted the offer on the CACH system. The placement through CACH minimise the number of walk-ins at PSET institutions thus eliminating potential problems that may be experienced.

Throughout the year the Department will work very closely with universities to ensure that the academic year proceeds as planned.

Skills development expansion

Skills development expansion planning forms part of the enrolment planning process. Universities are required to align the plans to the broader institutional strategic plans and policies, national plans, and the human resource development strategy of the country. The Department has an enrolment planning tool that is used to identify areas which may require focused attention and where targeted enrolment strategies should be implemented to produce better quality graduates who will contribute to the economy of the country. In the current enrolment planning cycle, the following are the strategic fields of study identified as areas where growth is required to be responsive to the strategic priorities of South Africa:

1. human health,
2. agriculture and food security,
3. maritime studies,
4. mining,
5. engineering and
6. initial teacher education.

In addition, massification of skills development will continue in the 2024/25 financial year as follows:

• Annual number of learners or students placed in WBL programs to increase 110 500 to 190 000;
• Number of learners registered in skills development programs annually to increase from 149 000 to 150 000;
• Number of learners entering artisanal programs annually to increase from 23 000 to 36 375;
• Number of artisans found competent annually to increase from 21 000 to 26 500;
• Number of learners who completed learnerships annually to increase from 32 550 to 53 000;
• Number of learners who completed internships annually to increase from 6 450 to 11 000;
• Number of learners who completed skills programs annually to increase from 105,000 to 128,000.