ATC170531: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training on its oversight visit to the Universities and TVET Colleges of Limpopo, dated 31 May 2017

Higher Education, Science and Innovation

REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING ON ITS OVERSIGHT VISIT TO THE UNIVERSITIES AND TVET COLLEGES OF LIMPOPO, DATED 31 MAY 2017

The Portfolio Committee having conducted an oversight visit to the universities and TVET Colleges of Limpopo on 28 – 31 March 2017 reports as follows.

1. DELEGATION LIST

1.1. Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training

Ms C September: Chairperson, Mr D Kekana (ANC), Ms J Kilian (ANC), Ms S Mchunu (ANC), Ms M Nkadimeng (ANC), Mr E Siwela (ANC), Prof B Bozzoli (DA) and Mr A van Der Westhuizen (DA).

1.2. Parliamentary support staff

Mr A Kabingesi: Committee Secretary, Ms M Modiba: Content Adviser and Mr S Mthonjeni: Committee Assistant.

2. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

Section 42(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Act No. 108 of 1996) bestows oversight function over the executive to the National Assembly (NA). Parliament’s Oversight and Accountability Model requires the institution to ensure that legislation passed by Parliament is being implemented. This function also includes monitoring the achievement of goals set by the Department and the government’s own programmes.

The National Development Plan (NDP) envisages that by 2030, South Africans should have access to education and training of the highest quality. The education and training system should cater for different needs and produce highly skilled individuals, and graduates of the post-school system should have adequate skills and knowledge to meet the current and future needs of the economy and society. The NDP further states that there should be increased participation and throughput rates in both the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges and the higher education sectors, an expansion of infrastructure, a strong relationship between the College sector and industry, College lecturers should spend time in the workplace updating their knowledge and skills, 30 000 artisans should be produced annually by 2030 and there should be an improved relationship between education institutions and employers.

In line with its oversight mandate, the Committee undertook an oversight visit to the universities (Venda and Limpopo) and TVET Colleges (Capricorn, Sekhukhune and Waterberg) of Limpopo.

The objectives of the oversight visit were:

  • To engage with universities and TVET Colleges on: governance and management; financial management; human resources and labour relations; infrastructure rollout; programme offerings; student housing; issuing of certificates; and the rollout of the new student-centred model.
  • To conduct site visits to the infrastructure projects funded by the Department to expand access and success to the post-school education and training opportunities.
  • To assess the progress made in the training and development of artisans to meet the 2030 target of producing 30 000 artisans per annum.
  • To assess the progress made in the implementation of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) new student-centred model.

 

3. SUMMARY OF THE PRESENTATIONS

3.1 University of Venda

3.1.1 Opening remarks by the Vice-Chancellor

The Vice-Chancellor explained that there was anxiety among the students at the University resulting from the non-payment of sBux allowances by NSFAS. He indicated that the University’s Finance Team engaged with NSFAS to resolve the challenge and the communication was copied to the Student Representative Council (SRC) for transparency. On 24 March 2017, NSFAS made a commitment to pay the allowances, and by 26 March 2017, students started receiving smses to sign the Loan Agreement Forms (LAFs).

The Vice-Chancellor said the University management tried to engage the students on the matter. However, the students made it clear that the non-payment of allowances was not a University matter. On the morning of the 28 March 2017, the Vice-Chancellor was informed of the new students’ demands, which included shortage of student accommodation, the student residence construction project (which was abandoned by the contractor) and insourcing of service staff. The Vice-Chancellor reported that the University had commenced with the insourcing, and the security services and personnel had been insourced. The University cleaning services and personnel would be insourced as soon as the current contract with the service provider expires. An agreement was already reached with the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU). The Student Representative Council had not engaged management on the new demands. Students barricaded the main entrance to the University and management was concerned about the safety of Members. 

The Vice-Chancellor appreciated the Committee’s commitment to engage the students. However, he expressed a concern about the safety of members in accessing the University precincts to conduct on-site inspection without getting assurance from the students. The Vice-Chancellor indicated that there was photographic evidence of the infrastructure development projects to show to the Committee progress in that regard.

3.1.2 Student Representative Council

The SRC Deputy-President made a presentation which highlighted the following: The UNIVEN SRC was run as a Parliamentary system like the national Parliament with different portfolios (the Speaker and Deputy Speaker and Ministers). The SRC Parliament had one year term of office, and in October of each year, elections were held to elect new members of the SRC Parliament. The SRC Parliament was guided by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Constitution of the SRC and the amended Institutional Statute of the University of Venda.

SBUX: The SRC noted that the new NSFAS system of paying students their allowances (travel, books, food and private accommodation) through the SBUX remained a serious concern for students at the University. The students had not yet received their allowances for 2017, and there had been promises from the University and NSFAS that the students would receive their allowances from the beginning of the academic year. The failure by NSFAS to pay allowances as promised prompted students to resolve to strike and disrupt the academic programme until their demands were met.

Overcrowded lecture halls and high student lecturer ratio: There was a shortage of the lecture halls for teaching and learning at the University. Students were forced to attend lectures standing outside of the lecture halls because of overcrowding in certain programmes. The SRC said that 300 students attended modules in a 200 seater venue. This affected student performance as almost 100 students attended classes while standing outside the lecture hall. Students reported that the student: lecturer ratio was high for some modules, and in some cases a lecturer had to teach two modules. This was because the University had a shortage of lecturers and this affected the quality of teaching and learning. It was also noted that students at the School of Agriculture did not attend lectures from February to mid-March 2017 because the University had not appointed lecturers for two modules. Students had lost tuition time on these modules.

Student housing and safety and security of students: The University had a shortage of student housing to meet its expanding enrolment. This resulted in students finding alternative off-campus accommodation, which at times was not safe and conducive for learning. The University did not provide transport for students who were accommodated at off-campus residences. The safety of students at off-campus residences was compromised owing to absence of dedicated security to protect students at these residences. The SRC proposed that the University should provide transport and security for students residing off-campus just like their counterparts who resided in campus residences. The SRC reported poor safety and security for students who were accommodated at University residences. They reported that criminals came into the residences and attacked students, stealing their laptops, cellphones and tablets. It was alleged that the safety of students was compromised by the outsourcing of security services, and security personnel were not dedicated to their work because of lower salaries they were paid. The SRC also reported that there were two residences that were being built on-campus. However, the construction work had stopped and there was no explanation given to students.

Insourcing: The SRC supported the call for insourcing of the University services staff as they were exploited by the private companies they worked for. The security personnel were underpaid and demotivated to execute their key job description of protecting the University and students.

3.1.3 Union (National Education and Health Allied Workers Union)

The union leadership said that they defended the University from the merger of higher education institutions in 2005 and also protected the employees from retrenchment in the past. The union supported the call by Minister Nzimande for insourcing of the University staff and there had been agreements reached on insourcing of services staff as part of the broader transformation agenda. The union agreed with the University that the implementation of insourcing should not lead to job losses.

The union noted that insourcing formed part of the transformation at the University, and there were no serious challenges on this matter, as most workers belonged to Nehawu. The union enjoyed a good working relationship with the management of the University, and there was constructive engagement between the two parties. The union was concerned that it was not represented in the University Council, and it had been fighting for representation on Council through recommending to the University management for the amendment of the Institutional Statute.

3.1.4 Institutional Forum (IF)

Background: The IF was established in terms of Section 31(2) of the Higher Education Act (Act No. 101 of 1997) and had advisory powers in respect of matters affecting the University. The IF was composed of representatives from different structures of the institutions which included Council, Management, Academic, Administrative, Labour Unions, SRC and Convocation. Its function and powers were primarily to advise Council on different issues like policies and fostering of institutional culture, among others.

Education Purpose & Philosophy: The IF provided transformational leadership in the service to society through teaching and learning, research and community engagement activities. To achieve this, the IF was always committed to develop the human potential of its staff and students in the full spectrum of its cognitive, economic, social, cultural, aesthetic and personal dimensions in the pursuit of democratic citizenship. The IF had adopted a humanizing pedagogical approach that respected and acknowledged diverse knowledge and traditions. The IF engaged the stakeholders in critical dialogue in order to nurture a participative approach to problem posing and solving, and the ability to contribute to a multi-cultural society. The IF inspired stakeholders to be passionate about and respectful of an ecologically diverse and sustainable environment.

#Feesmustfall: The IF noted that the South African universities were facing challenging times, which were compounded by a deteriorating economic climate. The sector was in the middle of a campaign for low or no fee, which has not helped. However, the issue of fees became urgent, after it was thrust onto the national stage through self-organisation, and agency of students as they challenged uneven access to higher education due to unaffordable fees. The University prided itself on its positioning as a dynamic African university that offered a diverse range of quality educational opportunities, and had always been committed to heeding the call for transformation. South African universities, including UNIVEN, carried increased costs annually due to, among other things, increasing student numbers in the continued bid to widen access for students across all economic spheres, while government grants continued to decline. During the national #Feesmustfall protests, UNIVEN SRC was committed and engaged constructively with management. There were always negotiations in good faith, which resulted in the stability the Institution enjoyed. However, the 2017 SRC commenced its work on a negative note.

The University’s core business of teaching and learning, research and community engagement required adequate resources to maintain and grow, without compromising quality. This, among other things, entailed ensuring that the University’s infrastructure and facilities were maintained and expanded. The University needed to attract and retain good staff and to maintain and expand its infrastructure to accommodate the growing number of students sitting at 15 000. In the interim, the University had developed a survival kit which could sustain the University in the event students fail to pay fees or government does not pay grants.  

Transformation Plan: A workshop was conducted on 31 March 2016 with Transformation Theme leaders, SRC representatives and joint Structures representatives. Another comprehensive workshop was scheduled for 09 May 2017 between Integrated Transformation Theme Champions, IF and available members of the Executive Members of Council.

Challenges: The IF reported that the climate among the staff within the University was not rosy. There were continuous disciplinary cases taking place. There was a challenge to meet gender equity targets at the executive management level. The shoddy work done on some of infrastructure projects was a serious concern. The IF was also concerned about the shortage of student accommodation and lecture halls.

3.1.5 Management

Governance and management: The University Council was established in terms of the Higher Education Act (No 101 of 1997) as amended. The Council was the highest structure of governance of the University. The University had a 30 member Council and the members were drawn from different stakeholders that were both internal and external to the institution. The Council had six sub-committees, namely the Executive Committee of Council, Human Resources, Finance, Senate, Student Affairs, Tender, Convocation, Institutional Forum and Audit Committee. The Council sub-committees worked hard to hold management accountable. The University held a successful workshop at which a Strategic Plan 2016 – 2020 was developed. The Strategic Plan in which the University aims to reposition itself as a leading national and regional university was approved by Council. There was a good working relationship between management and Council. People were held accountable for their performance.

The University invited Mervin King (the author of the King III Report) to present to management and Council on governance. The University said that governance was a collective responsibility. There was an open door policy and constructive engagement between University stakeholders and management. The University had a lean senior management structure and this was done to save costs.

Conversion to Comprehensive University: The University had introduced career-focused programmes (Higher Certificates, Diplomas, and Bachelor programmes), of which some were already on offer while others were pending approval by the Department of Higher Education and Training, accreditation by the Council on Higher Education (CHE) and registration by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA). Other programmes in the engineering field included Agricultural Engineering, Bio System and Mine Survey. The University was engaging with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) for professional accreditation. However, the process of accreditation by the professional body delayed. The University had submitted a business plan to the Department for funding of infrastructure and staff for the new programmes.

The Construction Technology programme received funding from the Construction Education and Training Authority (CETA) for construction of the Skills Development Centre and lecturer training for the programme. The University received R60 million from the Banking Sector Education and Training Authority (BANKSETA) and had partnered with the University of Johannesburg (UJ) and the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) to train Chartered Accountants. The University management requested the Committee to assist with soliciting a response from the Department on the submitted business plan and provisional funding for the new programmes.

Ministerial Targets on Enrolments: The University’s headcount projected target for 2019 was 15 592 with an average annual increase of 6.1 percent between 2014 and 2019. The target for first-time entering students was 3 360 by 2019. The University’s plans for 2019 were to have: 45 percent enrolments in Science; Engineering and Technology (SET) and Health; 19 percent in Business and Management; 15 percent in Education; 21 percent in other Humanities; 4.1 percent undergraduate diplomas and certificate enrolment and 12 percent at postgraduate level. Student enrolment at the University increased from a total headcount of 11 081 in 2008 to 15 020 in 2017. The enrolment of foreign students decreased because of the termination of the Zimbabwean Presidential Scholarship. The number of female students enrolled at the postgraduate level dropped, and it affected the recruitment of females in senior positions. The total number of staff at the University was 894. The University had 335 international students enrolled in 2017. The University experienced poaching of qualified and competent academics and researchers.

Ministerial Targets on Teaching Output / Graduate Output: The University had a target of 87 percent success rate by 2019. The graduates target for 2019 was 3 140 (20 percent graduation rate) from 1 764 in 2012. The postgraduates’ output targets for 2019 were: 245 Master degrees 120 Research Masters degrees and 40 Doctoral degrees. The student success rate increased from 80.09 percent in 2012 to 82.9 in 2016. The graduation rate at the University in 2015 was 17.7 percent.

Ministerial Targets on Research Output: The 2019 target for the production of publication units was 290 up from 128 units in 2012.This would result in an increase in per capita output (permanent academic staff) to 1.35 in 2019. The target of academic staff with a doctoral qualification would be 41 percent in 2019 from 31 percent in 2012. The University had increased its percentage of publications in international journals from 44 percent in 2013, to 66 percent in 2014 and 73 percent in 2015. The University was ranked at number 15 in the DHET national research output rankings. 130 permanently appointed instruction/research staff had doctoral degrees (34 percent) and the target for 2019 was 41 percent. The University had 23 rated researchers.

Infrastructure: Infrastructure spending increased from R4 million in 2008 to R103 million in 2015 from the University’s own funding. Spending from the DHET infrastructure grant increased from R77 million in 2008 to R518 million in 2015. Some of the completed infrastructure projects included: new lecture halls; mathematics and natural science building; library, campus clinic; new faculty of education building; paving of the university roads; student cafeteria; swimming pool; basketball and tennis courts; life sciences and chemistry building; new student residences; student administration building; school of agriculture; sport fields; nursing simulation laboratories; main university entrance and new water reservoirs.

The current infrastructure projects included: 304 bed male student residence; laundry and tuck shop (which were at 50 percent completion). The project value was R68 million. Phase II was School of Education project, which was at 65 percent completion and the project value was R37 million; a School of Health Sciences, which was at 45 percent completion with a project value of R43 million and a Student Centre which was at 45 percent completion with a project value of R28 million. The University obtained a loan of R300 million from the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) to add an additional 1 800 beds.

Partnerships / Internationalisation: The University had partnerships with the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) and the National Skills Fund (NSF), which amounted to R130 million over eight (8) years. The University had implemented a R27 million funded projects by the National Skills Fund (NSF) jointly with the Vhembe TVET College and Madzivhandila Agricultural College in animal and plant production, Agri-mechanisation, welding, plumbing, pipe fitting and farm equipment. Internationally, the University worked with universities and other partners in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, Africa, Europe, India and North America.

Finances: The University did not budget for a deficit and the surplus generated was reinvested in infrastructure development. Ten years ago, the University used to pay salaries from a bank overdraft. However, the financial situation had improved and it had investments, which amounted to R600 million. The total net asset value of the University was R2.5 billion. The total income for 2016 academic year amounted to R1 billion, with a total expenditure of R962 million, leaving a surplus of R86.5 million.

Administration of NSFAS bursaries: The University was among the institutions which were selected to pilot the NSFAS’s new Student-Centred Model in 2013. The NSFAS allocation to the University had grown steadily over time. The scheme had made it possible for many poor students to access higher education. The University received a total allocation of R332 million from NSFAS to support financially needy students. The University experienced challenges with the new student-centred model which included: Difficulties by rural students to access internet to apply for NSFAS funding; inadequate capacity of NSFAS call centre to handle SBUX and other student enquiries; delays in responses from the NSFAS call centre and the NSFAS system inability to handle high volumes of applications towards the closing date. Students in the missing middle were already catered for through the gap-funding.

3.1.6 Site visit

The Committee could not undertake an on-site visit to the University precincts due to student protests. The students closed the entry to the main entrance of the University, and the law enforcement authorities advised the Committee to cancel its site visit due to the volatile situation at the University and for the safety and security of members.           

3.2 Sekhukhune TVET College

3.2.1 Student Representative Council

Partnerships with industries: There were 21 mines around Sekhukhune District. However, the College experienced challenges in the placement of students at the mines for work integrated learning (WIL). The SRC suggested that government should play a leading role in linking industries with Colleges so that exiting students could get access to experiential learning. The SRC said that there were workshops at the College but there was no engagement with the mining industries to partner with the College.

Shortage of qualified lecturers: The College had a severe shortage of qualified lecturers for trimester courses, and this was a challenge for students at the College. Lecturers at College did not have industry experience and were not artisans. Students were taught by lecturers who just completed their N6 qualification with no prior teaching experience. Some lecturers were forced to teach four subjects and this affected the quality of teaching and pass rates. There was a need to employ more qualified lecturing staff at the College to improve the quality of teaching and students’ academic performance.

Computer laboratories and workshops: The College’s computer labs had a few computers, some were not functional and most of them had outdated software. The College’s workshops had old and dysfunctional equipment, and this affected students’ performance.

Student grievances: The service offered to students by the College was inadequate. Management delayed to respond to student grievances, and this contributed to student protests.

Student housing and catering services: Students lived in poor conditions at the College’s residences. The cleaning company contracted by the College did not offer adequate cleaning services to students in the residences. The surroundings at the campuses were untidy. The College did not have adequate sport and recreation facilities. The College did not have feeding schemes at any of its campuses. The majority of students enrolled at the College came from poor family backgrounds and could not afford to buy themselves groceries. Students did not receive their food allowances at some campuses. The SRC recommended that feeding schemes should be introduced at the campuses.

Progress in the issuance of the NC(V), Report 191 Certificates and Diplomas and pending results: The certification backlog affected students. Some of them completed their programmes without receiving their certificates. The delays in the issuance of outstanding certificates and diplomas remained a serious concern to students because employers were not considering applications without supporting certificates. Delays in the finalisation of results affected students adversely and the College advised students to register for the next semester/level without knowing the outcome of their results.

Student allowances and transport: The late payment of allowances for transport and accommodation was a concern to students, and contributed to the student drop-out rate. The SRC said that the late payment of allowances was a waste, and did not serve the purpose. This was because some students drop out as a result of not having transport or accommodation allowances. The Minister told the nation that there would bursaries for students in TVET Colleges. However, the College was not paying the allowances to students. The first year students at the College did not receive their allowances from the NSFAS since 2016.

The challenge of poor infrastructure and transport had not been attended to by the College. Government committed itself to prioritise the employment of young people with high quality occupational and vocational skills, however, there was little evidence of that. Students were, however, against the capping of enrolments.

Administration of NSFAS funding: The NSFAS offices should be decentralised or be within reach of the College. The online registration system for rural students was a challenge owing to limited access to the internet. Students in rural areas should be given an option to submit hard copies of Loan Agreement Forms to NSFAS. The College support officers should be trained in assisting students with applying for NSFAS bursaries.

3.2.2 Unions (National Education and Health Allied Workers Union)

Shortage of staff: The College had a shortage of academic and support staff to meet its enrolment target. The College employed staff based on the imposed 63 expenditure on personnel costs. There was no replacement of staff who resigned or died because the College expenditure on personnel costs was exceeding the 63 percent cap. The College indicated that the Department did not have adequate funding to fill vacant posts for additional staff.

Communication between Council and union: The College Council did not have a good working relationship with the union. The union was not represented on Council, and it was not consulted on key decisions taken by Council, which affected the College. The College Council should engage with the union to understand the challenges experienced by employees.

Late payment of allowances: The union indicated that students were badly affected by the delays in the payment of allowances by NSFAS. The late payment of allowances contributed significantly to the student drop-out rate and student protests experienced at the College.

Procurement processes: The union was concerned about the procurement of goods and services to support teaching and learning at the College. The utilisation of external service providers to supply equipment and equipment for lecturers was tedious. The late arrival of the tools of trade for lecturers compromised the quality of teaching and learning.

3.2.3 Management

Background: Sekhukhune TVET was established after a merger process between CS Barlow, a former Technical College, (which offered mainly N1 to N6 theoretical and skills training (practical) as well as N3 to N6 in Business Studies) and CN Phatudi, a former College of Education. The merger was announced by the Minister of Education and was an attempt to change the TVET landscape. The College was situated in the South-Eastern part of Limpopo in the Greater Sekhukhune District, which incorporated five municipalities, namely: Greater Groblersdal; Greater Fetakgomo; Greater Makhuduthamaga; Greater Tubatse and Greater Marble Hall. The College had three (3) campuses located in the following areas: Motetema, Praktiseer and Ga-Nchabeleng. The College opened the Apel satellite campus in 2016 to expand access to education and training for the rural community of Apel and surrounding villages.

 

Budget: The College received a disclaimer audit opinion for 2015/16, because the system crashed during the audit period. The College had a total budget of R100 million for 2017 that was made up R78 million for programme funding and R22 million for NSFAS bursaries. The total allocation for the NC(V) programme was R60 million and R39 million for Report 191. The College had 928 unfunded full-time equivalent (FTE) students, which amounted to R22 million and it also operated with a deficit of R17 million. The College would operate on a R39 million deficit for 2017. For the 2016 academic year, the College was funded on the basis of 2013 enrolment figures. The College’s salary bill was above the 63 percent cap imposed by the Department owing to: the implementation of the Collective Agreement No 2 of 2014, which compelled Colleges to convert temporary and contract lecturers who served in the Colleges for more than 12 months to permanent staff; Colleges were supposed to be funded 80 percent of the programme funding. However, they have been receiving 54 percent instead funding of 80 percent; prior to migration of the College employees to the Department of Higher Education and Training management staff salaries was not part of the employee cost at the College, but has then been included in the 63 percent cap; the College budgets increased at 5.2 percent consumer price index (CPI) rate while compensation of employees costs increased by 7.2 percent. The College relied on part-time contractual lecturers.

 

Outstanding migration issues: The College had not yet received from the Department employment contracts of employees who migrated to the Department with effect from 1 April 2015.

Infrastructure development: The College had acquired 11.5 hectares of land and would like to build a Skills and Artisan Development Centre. However, owing to lack of funding, the project could not be realised. Unlike universities the TVET College sector does not receive an infrastructure development grant from the Department. For that reason, refurbishment and maintenance of the existing infrastructure and the construction of new infrastructure was not possible. 

 

Student profile and performance: The College had a total enrolment of 6 737 students in 2017 - 2 135 students were enrolled in the NC(V) programme and 4 602 in Report 191 programme. Female students made up the majority of students at the College (59 percent) and males constituted 41 percent. The NC(V) certification rate for 2016 was 26 percent (target was 50 percent) and 51 percent (target 60 percent) for Report 191. The NC(V) throughput rate in 2016 was 22 percent (against the target of 48 percent) and Report 191, 50 percent (against the target of 58 percent).

 

Outstanding certificates and diplomas: Since 2013, the rate of issuing diplomas and certificates had been very slow at the College. Many graduates eagerly awaited these documents to apply for jobs. There were 237 diplomas and 485 certificates outstanding.

 

Role of the College in artisan development and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL): The College was accredited in Electrical and Diesel Mechanics programmes. The College had produced 18 artisans in Electrical Mechanics and 10 in Diesel Mechanics. The College was currently not implementing RPL. However, it was planning to introduce it so that it could be able to attract industries operating in Sekhukhune District Municipality. The College employees were trained in RPL implementation in 2016.

Partnership with industries and SETAs: The College partnered with the following institutions: Education, Training and Development Practices SETA  (funding 19 interns for 18 months and training of 59 lecturers through the University of South Africa (UNISA) on Training Practices for Educators and Trainers programme); Eskom for placement of both learners for WIL and lecturers for industry exposure; the Chemical Industries SETA for the training of four staff members through the University of Limpopo on a management development programme; the Bank SETA for the funding of 40 interns for 18 months; the Food and Beverages SETA for the funding of 85 interns for 18 months and the Fibre Processing and Manufacturing SETA for the funding of 25 interns for 12 months.

 

The College also had partnerships with other TVET Colleges such as, Mopani TVET College, Letaba TVET College and City College Plymount in the United Kingdom; Institutions of higher learning: Tshwane University of Technology and the University of South Africa. Partnerships with employers include: Eskom, Limpopo Toyota, Medz Electrical, Barloworld Toyota Middleburg and VPK Business Venture. Partnerships with the following government departments: the Department of Rural Development and Land Affairs, the Department of Labour, the Department of Transport and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs were also entered into.

 

NSFAS funding administration: The College had appointed bursary officers as well as administrators at its campuses. The College had a challenge of long queues in its student support services (SSS) office during the application and submission time. Since the beginning of 2017, students applied online, but the challenge was that the College’s Coltech system was not linked to NSFAS. The problem had since been resolved. The challenge was that the officers and administrators were not funded by NSFAS. The SRC sat on the College’s Financial Aid Committee. The TVET College Bursary Guidelines do not provide for meal allowances to be paid to students.

 

Student housing: The College had a total of 1 207 student beds. Of these, 680 were in CS Barlow Campus with an occupancy rate of 8.4 percent, 300 at CN Phatudi Campus with an occupancy rate of 37.7 percent and 227 at Apel Campus with a 100 percent occupancy rate. It was reported that the low occupancy rate at the residences, in particular on the CS Barlow and CN Phatudi campuses was because of the exodus of students from College residences to private accommodation so that they can claim accommodation allowances.

3.2.4 Site visit to Apel Campus

The College started operating at the Apel Campus at the beginning of January 2016. This was after the nearby communities demanded the reopening of the facility for training and skilling of young people living in the surrounding villages. It was reported that the Community threatened to vandalise the facility if their request for education and training of the youth was not met. The Apel Campus was among the 21 former Teacher Training Colleges of Limpopo which were closed down in 2002 based on a government decision to close Teacher Training Colleges. The Apel Campus was the property of the Department of Basic Education, and part of the College was used for training of teachers or hosting other events. Prior to the re-opening of this campus, the College infrastructure lay dormant for 15 years, which contributed to the deterioration of its infrastructure.

The College was given approval by its Council to clean up the Apel campus and repair some of the infrastructure which was dilapidated, including the ablution facilities and the sewerage system. However, the College was cautious of committing more funds towards the maintenance of the campus, because of the uncertainty about the ownership. The Department of Higher Education and Training and the Department of Public Works embarked on a process to identify infrastructure that is not utilised or underutilised for the purpose of converting it into student accommodation and teaching and learning facilities. The transfer of former Teacher Training College infrastructure to the Department of Higher Education and Training was also under way. However, it was reported that bureaucratic processes delayed the transfer of Teacher Training College infrastructure to DHET.

The Committee visited some lecturer rooms and student residences. The majority of the students in the human resource management classes were from the nearby communities, and they hoped to work in the surrounding mines after completing the programme. The student residence with a capacity of 227 beds was in a bad state since it had been un-occupied for 15 years. The College management informed the Committee that the residence was built two years prior to the decision to close the Teacher Training Colleges. The structure of the building was still solid. However, it would require significant investment to refurbish it, and the College did not have adequate funding for that. The campus had two residences which accommodated both male and female students. However, the College did not have a dining hall to cater for these students, and they relied on the nearby tuck shop to buy food. The Campus had staff houses but some of the houses were illegally occupied by people who were not paying rent and rates to the management. It was uncertain who managed the tuck shop

3.3 Capricorn TVET College

3.3.1 Student Representative Council

NSFAS Allowances: The SRC said that the College had been failing to pay allowances due to students since 2014. The SRC indicated that students had not received their allowances which were kept in the College’s account. As a result, students failed to come to the College to attend classes due to non-payment of their allowances. The DHET Bursary Guidelines provided clear guidance on how the College should allocate allowances to students. The students were failing to meet the 80 percent attendance requirement owing to non-payment of allowances by NSFAS. The Colleges were not held accountable for not paying student allowances. The SRC requested the Committee to address the matter.

Pending results: Negligence from College staff contributed to the students not receiving their results, and there was no consequence management against lecturers who failed to submit student marks.

Student accommodation: The College had a shortage of student housing to meet the demand of its growing student numbers. The Seshego Campus had 7000 students and the residences accommodated 700 students.

Outdated curriculum: The student said they were being trained with outdated equipment in the College’s workshop, and the curriculum of the College was not aligned with industry needs. This had negative implications for students to find employment upon completion of their studies. Students registered for Life Orientation but were offered Basic Computer Literacy, which was not reflected on the certificates. Students had to explain to employers that the life orientation course was basic computer literacy. College students were expected to be trained on carburettors, which were no longer used in the modern cars. The SRC recommended updating of the curriculum to suit the industry needs. 

Infrastructure funding: The College needed more funds to expand its infrastructure and they believed that workshops should not have classrooms next to workshops.

 

 

3.3.2 Unions: National Education and Health Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU), Professional Educators Union (PEU), the Public Servant Association (PSA) and South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU)

The Unions appreciated the opportunity to meet with the Portfolio Committee and requested that the meetings should be convened regularly. They also requested that the issues raised by the unions should be taken forward and acted on by Parliament.

Uniformity across the TVET Sector:  The unions noted that all TVET Colleges in the country should be run in a uniform manner. There were lots of disparities in how the Colleges were being managed.

NATED programme: The NATED programme had serious challenges. Academic staff was employed on a contractual basis for not more than three months, earning R180 per hour. They worked for a maximum of four hours per day. The lecturers did not have benefits such as sick leave and maternity leave. The unions expressed their dissatisfaction with the conditions of service of the contract lecturers. The union recommended that lecturers in the NATED programmes be employed permanently like the NC(V), and the programme be offered on a full time basis. The Department should take over the management of the programme. They also recommended that unions be involved in the recruitment and disciplinary processes of lecturers. The Department of Higher Education and Training should take over the management of NATED programmes.

College Councils: The short term contracts of the NATED lecturers were signed and approved by Councils. Autonomy existed in the operations of College Councils, although there were clear roles for councils as set out in legislation. The migration of TVET Colleges had created confusion with regard to the powers of college councils and powers of the Department. The Continuing Education and Training Colleges Act (Act No 16 of 2006) should be reviewed by Parliament, especially the role of College Councils.

Migration: There was a programme running for two years to appoint academic staff permanently. Though the process was partly finalised, the College allegedly divided staff by appointing lecturing staff earning below R204 000, while those earning above were not appointed on a permanent basis. Academic staff with higher qualifications earned more. This meant that the quality of education was negatively affected. The union recommended that the function shift process should be completed urgently and that staff training and development be prioritised. Some lecturers also received payslips with incorrect designations.

Infrastructure: The College did not have sufficient computer laboratories and this affected students’ academic performance. It was difficult to teach students and expect them to practice without the necessary computer equipment. Unlike Colleges, universities had sufficient computers. There was a need to allocate more resources to Colleges to attract more learners and to ensure that infrastructure is of a high standard.

Stakeholder meetings: There was a need for a signed collective agreement that governed and regulated engagement between unions and management of Colleges, and there should be direct access of the unions to the Department.

Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) and Personal Management Development System (PMDS): The IQMS and PMDS had not been implemented adequately. In some of the campuses of the College, staff had received the payment of IQMS, while the staff members at Seshego Campus have not received the payments. Outstanding payments from 2014/15 should be made to the affected employees of the College, especially at the Seshego campus. The campuses of the College were treated differently by management as if it was not one College. Workshops were utilised as exam rooms, though they were meant for practicals and not for examinations.

Shortage of general workers and support staff: The College had inadequate support staff and general workers, while cleaning service was outsourced to a private company outsourced for cleaning. The payslips for lecturers indicated that lecturers were senior lecturers, but they were not paid according to the position.

The union called for the appointment of permanent staff instead of outsourcing services. The interns worked as full time clerks on a full time basis. The union proposed that the admin clerk’s post should be advertised.

3.3.3 Management and Council

Background: The Capricorn TVET College had four campuses and one satellite campus at Seshego Campus.  The various campuses of the College were located in the following areas: Polokwane; Seshego; Ramokgopa; Senwabarwana and Bokoni - all in the Limpopo Province. The Head Office of the College was located at Polokwane.

 

Governance: The College had a functional Council, which was established in terms of Section 10 of the CETC Act of 2006. The Council was made up of internal and external representatives appointed by the Minister and management of the College. The achievements of Council included: a good relationship with management, a good blend of skills and experience at Council level, a good oversight function over the College, a good policy development, procedure and guidelines to guide implementation and ethical conduct of Council and management and the prudent use of College resources. The areas needing improvement included: Need for a balance in DHET student enrolment plans and College resources, limited funds owing to budget cuts from the DHET, review of allowance of external Council members to avoid losing expertise, remuneration of College staff, need to revise the CETC Act to allow Council to play an active role in the employment, supervision and performance management of College executive.

 

Financial Management and Budget: The Deputy Principal of Finance was appointed through the DHET/SAICA CFO Support Project. The Deputy Principal had four Deputy Managers responsible for Income and Budget, Expenditure Assets and Stores, Infrastructure Development and Supply Chain Management. The College received unqualified audit opinions since 2016 and it managed to recover more than R9 million, which was owed by students from September 2016 to February 2017. TVET Colleges did not receive funds for capital infrastructure development, and the allocation for operational expenditure, including staff costs, was reduced annually.

 

The Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) budget was very low when Colleges were transferred to the DHET. The 80 percent funding norm had never been implemented. From 2014, the total College subsidy budget was reduced from R48 million to R27 million in 2016. The 2016 budget was based on 2013 FTEs and only 53 percent of this was funded. The total bursary allocation during the 2016/17 financial year amounted to R75 million. During 2016, an additional amount of R18 million was allocated to the College in October 2016. The College was in dire need of additional teaching staff, lecture rooms and workshop equipment and tools to fulfil its obligation of teaching and learning.

 

Budget Allocation and Implication on 2017 Intake: The College decided to admit the same number of students as in 2016 which resulted in the exclusion of a number of students who wanted to enrol. The College had to reduce on student enrolments and staff numbers in order to comply with the 63 percent cap. The College maintained the numbers and funded the 5.5 percent excess on the imposed cap. The subsidy received from the DHET was not the full 80 percent. The indicative Human Resource (HR) budget for 2016/17 was R183 million as communicated in December 2015. However, this was changed to R147 million in April 2016. The College’s Organogram approved by the Council could not be realised as some posts were not funded. The College’s compensation of employees budget was R144 million and could only fund 464 posts that were on the PERSAL system. The 464 posts that were on PERSAL system included management staff, permanent support staff, permanent full-time lecturing staff for NC(V) programmes and temporary full-time staff for NC(V) programmes. On 28 March 2017, the College received communication from the DHET indicating that all the identified lecturers to be appointed permanently would be appointed. 

 

Administration of NSFAS funding: The College was using the new student-centred model for administering NSFAS bursaries to students. Since the 9 January up to the 17 February 2017, about 1 636 paper-based applications were submitted to NSFAS and 2 050 students applied online. The NSFAS had provisionally funded 5 540 new and returning students. The College convened a Bursary Committee and an Appeals Meeting to determine the allocation criteria based on 2016 bursary recipients estimates. The 2017 allocation was 70 percent tuition fee and 30 percent for allowances. The SBUX implementation had been halted owing to some of the challenges faced by NSFAS pertaining to the system, and the money would be transferred to the College for distribution to students. The College was not allocating accommodation allowances to students accommodated in private residences because students did not have proof of residences and invoices from the accommodation providers, as required.

 

Student accommodation: The College had four campuses. However, only three campuses (Polokwane, Seshego and Senwabarwana) had student accommodation. The Polokwane Campus had 6 500 students with 189 students in the residences and 3 250 still needed to be accommodated. The Seshego Campus’ enrolment was 8 700 students with 600 accommodated and 4 000 in need of accommodation. Enrolment at Senwabarwana Campus was 2 988 students with 60 students accommodated and 1 500 requiring accommodation. 70 percent of students at the College residences were financially needy and academically performing bursary beneficiaries.

 

Academic performance and dropout rate: The November 2016 examination was conducted at the College’s five examination centres. The candidates who did not meet the internal continuous assessment (ICASS) minimum requirements were identified and excluded from writing examinations. The Engineering Campus obtained an overall pass rate of 66 percent. 17 158 subjects were written in the NC(V) programme. The overall certification rate for NC(V) Level 2 was 28 percent, Level 3, 33 percent and Level 4, 28 percent. The overall certification rate for Report 191 N4 was 30 percent, N5 was 42 percent, N6 was 27 percent. The overall dropout rate from the NC(V) programme was 29 percent. The retention rate of students in NATED programmes was 98 percent. The Principal noted that the College had the best engineering campus in the whole TVET College sector.

 

Partnerships and Infrastructure: The College had 51 partnership agreements with various stakeholders including government, SETAs, employers and training providers. These partnerships provided opportunities for apprenticeship, learnerships, lecturer workplace experience, internships and work integrated learning for College students. 100 students were placed at Eskom for work integrated learning (WIL). The delays in the payment by NSFAS and issuance of certificates by SETAs were serious challenges for the College. The College had insufficient facilities to accommodate its students. Student accommodation remained a serious challenge and the College did not have the funding to expand its student residences. The College did not have a budget for Capital Expenditure. Four of the 21 SETAs were housed at the College and were not paying any rental. However, the College was not happy with the services rendered by the SETAs. The Construction SETA owed the College R3 million. 

 

The College had a 20 year infrastructure development plan for every campus. The College management conceded that there were dilapidated workshops at Seshego campus. However, the College had been refurbishing some of the workshops. The College had also identified some sites for further expansion and this included a primary school in Polokwane.

 

Title deeds of the campuses: The Principal noted that the transfer process of the Seshego and Senwabarwana campuses was underway. Ramokgopa Campus was built on tribal authority land. The negotiations to obtain the title deed of the land were ongoing.

 

 

 

 

3.3.4 Site visit to workshops:

Electrical workshop: The workshop was used for practical lessons of students registered in the Electrical Engineering course. Students were taught electrical principles and practice. For the practicals, students were trained in motor control, electrical distribution board wiring and fault finding. The workshop accommodates 25 students. The workshop equipment was similar to industry workplaces. This enables students to be assessed thoroughly on their competency levels and skills.

Plumbing workshop: The workshop formed part of the Civil Engineering Department with a particular focus on training students in plumbing. Students were being taught how to lay sewer pipes during the construction of houses. Training also included the installation of geysers with solar panels and the installation of baths, basins and showers. The plumbing workshop had recently been renovated to accommodate more students, since plumbing was a popular trade in high demand. Plumblink donated the latest residential solar panels used to heat geysers. The workshop had lecturer rooms for the convenience of students. The mock-up installation of sewer pipes in the workshop resembled the INDLELA format so that students who go for assessment at the Institute for the Development of Learnerships, Employment Skills and Labour Assessments (INDLELA) will find it easy to pass. Students were assessed at INDLELA in order to obtain the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO) trade-test certificate to become qualified artisans.

Auto-mechanic workshop: The workshop provided practical lessons mostly for students registered in Mechanical Engineering programmes. The workshop had diesel engines where students were trained to repair and maintain the vehicles. The engines in the workshop were carburettor petrol engines, which were phased out in modern cars. The workshop did not have sufficient cars to train students during their practicals, and the College had to use its own old cars for training.

Carpentry workshop: The workshop provided practical training for students registered in the carpentry programme. The workshop was fitted with industrial equipment used for cutting planks. Students were trained in basic carpentry, fitting ceilings and roof trussing. The students were also fixed all the broken tables of the College for reuse.

Boilermaking/welding workshop: The workshop was fitted with relevant equipment for welding and machines for cutting metal sheets of different sizes. There were qualified artisans who taught students during the practicals.

Fitting and turning workshop: The workshop was fitted with equipment which students used during their practicals.

The College had other workshops which included: Panel beating, refrigeration and air conditioning, automotive and water purification. Due to time constraints the Committee could not conduct site visits to all the workshops.

3.4 Waterberg TVET College

3.4.1 Student Representative Council

Commencement of the 2017 Academic year: The South African TVET sector started the year on a sad note when the South African Further Education and Training Student Association (SAFETSA) took to the streets and stopped the start of 2017 academic year. Potential students were stranded, as some TVET Colleges had to close their gates due to the strike.

NSFAS Response: There were delays by NSFAS in responding to the student applications for accommodation and transport, especially for off-campus students.

Communication between management and SRC: The SRC blamed management for not responding to student grievances timeously. They said management should be easily accessible for student leaders.

Challenges: There were delays in the delivery of books at the College. Some campuses started without lecturers, there were delays with the issuing of the NC (V) Level 4 certificates. The SRC complained that student placement in the workplaces was not a priority for the College. They also complained about unqualified lecturers, computer laboratories without computers, insufficient sports facilities and equipment for sport codes and insufficient classrooms.

3.4.2 Unions: National Education and Health Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU), South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) and National Professional Teachers Organisation of South Africa (NAPTOSA)

Non-payment of Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) and Performance Management Development System (PMDS): The College employees said they had not received their IQMS payment, though a commitment to pay by August 2015 was made by the Department. They claimed there was a manipulation of processes to favour certain individuals, especially during recruitment, including granting PMDS and IQMS scoring. It was recommended that the Department should finalise the IQMS payments. The unions also said that the Occupation Specific Dispensation (OSD) was not well implemented in the Department of Education and DHET, and they recommended that it be attended to by the DHET.

63 percent cap on employee cost: The Department had set a 63 percent cap on employee cost for all the Colleges, and there was no clarity on how they arrived at that. This had serious implications for recruitment of new and additional staff at Colleges. The College had a shortage of lecturing and support staff. At the other campus, there were two cleaners who had to clean 43 classes and 10 offices. The College was not able to employ additional staff because of the imposed cap and students were used to clean the classes.

Payment of markers: There were delays in the compensation of markers, and they had to wait for a period up to six months to receive their payment.

Salaries: The remuneration of academic staff at the College should be reviewed, because the salary packages were not attractive. This affected the College in attracting and retaining suitably qualified lecturers.

Organogram: The Department had delayed the finalization of the College organograms.

Agricultural farm: The farm was far from where students conducted their classes. There was need for student accommodation at the farm so that they could interact daily with the farm activities.

IT Centre Building: The building (former Mokopane College of Education) belonged to the provincial department of education. The facility was shared and needs to be transferred to the College. The Minister undertook to facilitate the transfer of the College to the Waterberg TVET College.

Articulation: NC(V) students had difficulties in articulating to higher education institutions.

Placement of students in industry: Industry was not opening their doors to students from Colleges. The College had a low rate of student placement in industry.

Overload of work: Lecturers were being overworked and they did not have sufficient teaching time because of the administrative burden of the NC(V) programme.

Inadequate communication with management: New employees did not receive induction on the Organogram of the College. Management did not communicate with unions on the relocation of staff to and from different campuses. Management had failed to implement agreements reached with the unions and failed to pay employee contributions to the South African Revenue Services (SARS). Management had also failed to implement back-payments of employees.

Favouritism and unfair treatment based on the colour of the skin: There were allegations that African employees were not treated the same as their white counterparts.

Job descriptions: The employees had not yet signed their job descriptions and this affected their performance.

Infrastructure and other teaching and learning resources: A shortage of computers, including outdated internet access made access to information difficult for both lecturers and students. There was a shortage of the lecture halls at some of the campuses as well as an insufficient supply of water at Thabazimbi Campus.

Recommendations: The unions recommended that management should: Develop proper and fair selection criteria for panel members and implement decisions taken, including decisions by the panel to appoint certain individuals based on their performance according to how they performed; HR policies should be followed without compromise for recruitment and filling of Departmental funded posts; a new funding model should be developed to fund the unfilled posts; and the IQMS and PMDS committees should be reconvened to include trade unions.

3.4.3 Management

Background: Waterberg TVET College was one of the seven TVET Colleges in the Limpopo Province. It was established in 2002 after merger between Potgietersrus Technical College and Lebowakgomo Commercial High School. It had now grown into a College with four Centres/Campuses and two practical sites where specialised skills were offered.

 

The College operated within two District Municipalities namely; Waterberg District (three campuses) and Capricorn District (one campus). The Campuses were located in three local municipalities, namely; Mogalakwena Municipality, Business Studies Centre with Simulation Centre (Mahwelereng), IT and Computer Science Centre (Mahwelereng) with two practical sites, Hotel School (Mokopane) and Rooywal Farm (Sterkrivier). At Lepelle-Nkumpi Municipality, there was an Engineering and Skills Training Centre in Lebowakgomo and in the Thabazimbi Municipality, the Thabazimbi Campus in Regorogile.

Infrastructure: The Business Studies Campus had a Simulation Centre, which was used for practical training for Office Administration, Accounting, Finance and Economics and Marketing students. The biggest section of the simulation centre was used as the Campus Administration Office. With regard to infrastructure expansion for this Campus, there was a need for building Administration Offices and two additional Computer Laboratories. The students shared accommodation facilities with students at the IT Campus, which was less than 4 kilometres away. 

IT and Computer Science Campus: The IT and Computer Science Centre buildings were that of the former Mokopane College of Education. The facility was currently shared with the Limpopo Department of Education, Mogalakwena District Offices and some laboratories were rented by the Limpopo Economic Development, Environment and Tourism (LEDET) for Computer Training. Other parts of the facility were sublet to other training providers or organisations. The College requested that the transfer of this facility to the DHET should be fast-tracked, as the sharing was not conducive for the students and the space currently allocated to the College was very limited.

IT and Computer Science Centre: The IT and Computer Studies Centre had two other facilities linked to it, which were used for practical purposes: A Hotel School in Mokopane, which was used by both hospitality and tourism students for practical training. A  Farm in Rooiwal, which was ± 45 kilometres  outside Mokopane and was used by primary agriculture students, Animal Production Diploma students and learners in mixed farming, Plant production and landscaping learnerships. The former Mokopane College of Education building had all the necessary facilities and if transferred, there would be no need for further expansion.

Engineering and Skills Training Centre: The campus was the Lebowakgomo Commercial High School during the eighties, and the infrastructure was consequently not suitable for the TVET College requirements. It had three fairly small workshops, which were used for practical training for automotive, welding, electrical and civil engineering trades. With regard to infrastructure expansion needs for this Campus, there was a need for: Two additional bigger workshops, two computer laboratories, students support centre with a library and campus administration offices.

Thabazimbi Campus: The campus was located in Regorogile near Thabazimbi Town. In 2016, the campus operated within the Amandelbult Campus facility and students moved into the newly constructed campus in January 2017. The College was in a process of acquiring teaching and learning equipment with support from the DHET and the SETAs. The major challenge was insufficient water supply, which affected the whole community of Thabazimbi. The College and schools around Regorogile were assisted by the municipality and mines which supplied water using a water tank truck.  The College was sometimes compelled to buy water since municipal and mine tanks were small. The College was in a process of purchasing a water tank and exploring the feasibility of erecting a borehole.

Student population: The enrolment gender classification within the College was: 35 percent male and females constituted 65 percent of the total student population. The age range of enrolled students was between 16 – 58 years. The student population was 100 percent Black. The population served by the College was predominantly rural, and as a result, almost 99 percent of students came from a rural background. The College had enrolled students with disabilities in both Ministerial and occupational programmes and plans to increase the numbers, were underway. The National Skills Fund (NSF) funding would be used to purchase equipment and other devices to address their needs.

Strategies to improve throughput: The College would ensure that the implementation of the 80 percent attendance policy is adhered to. The attendance monitoring and communication would be intensified. Students and their parents would receive attendance reports each term. During the students’ orientation, parents were invited to attend. The message from management to parents was for them to assist in monitoring their children’s attendance.  The inclusion of students who did not qualify to write exams affected the certification rate. As a result, policy on minimum Internal Continuous Assessment (ICASS) marks to qualify students to write final examinations would be implemented. The College offered a Peer Tutoring programme. The Level 4 high performers and the SRC members facilitated peer tutorials. The best Level 4 performers in Maths were appointed in the Internship programme to offer Maths remedial classes. 

Partnership with industries and other higher education institutions: University of Limpopo: Focus Areas: establishment of an Agricultural Learning Academy, provision of lecturers and the development of academic programmes. Tshwane University of Technology: Key areas of partnership and collaboration: TVET Colleges Governance and Leadership development, articulation of College graduates, lecturer qualification and development offering of Higher Education Programmes, mutual use of education and training facilities and database of top performing students. University of Venda: Placement of registered trainee student counsellors from the University of Venda who were accredited by the Health Professionals Council of South Africa (HPCSA) as registered counsellors to gain practical work experience and to be able to complete their qualification.

 

NSFAS Student centred model: The student centred model would assist in minimizing fraudulent activities as it was linked to a national database. Prospective students were assisted to apply online through the College’s student support officers, and the documents were scanned and emailed to NSFAS for processing. Students were also assisted to follow up on their applications. The College received from NSFAS a list of possible beneficiaries and assisted in communicating with students who were awarded bursaries. With regard to challenges, the process of receiving responses on the student applications’ status was very slow and delayed the registration of new students at the College. This also affected the College enrolment for 2017. Advocacy on the student-centred model should be intensified in 2017 and applications should be opened as early as July 2017.

 

Financial management: The College received an unqualified audit opinion for the financial year ended 31 December 2015. There were a few audit findings in the areas of inventory and management of liabilities. Management had taken some measures to ensure that such findings do not recur for example, monthly reconciliations are being done and internal controls strengthened. The College had seen a drop in the subsidies received from the DHET. The drop was a result of the DHET’s policy that the College’s employee costs must not exceed 63 percent of the total funding. The College was managing the excess personnel costs by ensuring that all staff members had a reasonable workload as prescribed in the relevant policies. The posts that were vacated were only filled when necessary.

 

Budget allocation: According to the College Funding Grid, the allocation funding for 2017 was R105 million in order to retain the 2016 enrolment level. This meant that the College had a deficit of R24 million. To reduce the deficit, the College had to do the following: reduce enrolment for all NCV programmes to 60 for Level 2 students (new intake); remove all the repeaters from the enrolment template and budget for progression and new intake; removed all N4 intake for NATED (Business Studies) and reduced the N1 intake for NATED (Engineering) to 70. Strategies would be developed to fund repeaters in 2017, since some of them were first-time repeaters and qualified for subsidy. The College did not include any new programmes planned to be phased in, as approved by DHET. Through these measures, the deficit was reduced to R 15 million.

 

Vacancies: The positions of two Deputy Principals (Finance and Registrar) could not be filled. The College was utilising the services of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) seconded Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for support in the Finance Department until such time that the DHET would have appointed a permanent CFO. In the absence of a Registrar, the College had split the functions. This sometimes this posed challenges with regard to the coordination of student registrations as well as student data management. There was a need for the DHET to finalise an organogram that would be uniform for all TVET Colleges. The inclusion of executive management in the 63 cap imposed on colleges was also affecting the appointment of other vacant posts within the College.

 

Governance: College Council members understood their fiduciary responsibility and worked diligently towards achieving the highest quality of success for the College. The College Statute was in place. All Council committees had charters in place which had been approved by Council and were adhered to. The policies had been approved by Council and were reviewed on a continuous basis.

 

The Student Representative Council (SRC) consisted of 10 members at each Campus, with the Central SRC comprising of eight members, two members from each Campus. The Central SRC President was a member of the College Council, and both the Central SRC President and the Education Desk Chairperson sat on the Academic Board. The capacity building programmes for SRC included: formal inauguration, formal induction programme and performance reflection sessions.

 

3.4.4 Site visit

Agricultural farm: The College acquired a 27 hectares agricultural farm through the recapitalisation funding allocated to the College in 2009 and used funding from the National Skills Fund (NSF) to purchase the farm equipment. The farm was situated 30 kilometres from the Central Office in Mokopane. The farm provided the fresh produce (chickens, eggs, meat from cattle, sheep and pigs) for utilisation by the Hotel School. The farm was also used for practical lessons for students registered in the Primary Agriculture and Animal and Plant Production programmes. Some of the farm produce (eggs, chickens and other livestock) was sold to generate income for sustaining the farm.

The farm boasted egg layers, broilers for meat, an egg grading facility as well as a hatchery. The farm also did chicks exchange with other hatcheries to rest the in-house hatchery facility as required. There were also livestock: cattle, sheep and pigs. The College also planted maize on the farm, which was used as maize meal for the hotel school and students. The maize grains were also used for chicken and pig feed. The poultry waste was composted and used as fertiliser for the vegetable gardens.

The farm had a manager with casual and support staff who maintained the facilities on a full time basis. The farm manager and some support staff were paid by the DHET. The College appointed interns to work at the farm as well as students who required work integrated learning (WIL) exposure were placed at the farm to reduce the wage bill of the College. Students who enrolled for the NC(V) Primary Agriculture and Animal Production and the National Rural Youth Service Corps (NARYSEC) learnership programmes as well as students from the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform were conducting their practicals at the farm. The College provided a bus to transport students from the campus to the farm for their training. The students were also trained in the cultivation of tomatoes, spinach, green pepper and other vegetables.

Lecturers appointed at the College to teach Primary Agriculture and Animal Production programmes were graduates of the Bachelor of Agriculture and Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from the University of Limpopo. The College had partnered with the University of Limpopo in the articulation of the NC(V) Primary Agriculture and Animal Production graduates to a university Diploma, which was at National Qualifications Framework (NQF) Level 6. UNISA wanted to partner with the College for research purposes.

Hotel school: The hotel school was used to train students for the hospitality and tourism industry. The College used recapitalisation funds to build the state of the art training facility. The school was accredited by the South African Chefs Association (SACA). The students were trained in a fully equipped industry-related kitchen environment. The School had cold storage and food preparation facilities, including facilities for dessert and pastry preparation. The College had a partnership with the Anglo American mine, which recruited students from the nearby villages and paid for their training in hospitality programmes. The students demonstrated to the Committee how they prepared different desserts.

The school had a hotel simulation facility with single rooms so that students could familiarize themselves with hotel rooms and how they were serviced, as well as table set up, laundry, waitering, customer services in the reception area and stock keeping. The quality of training offered to students was of good quality, and most of the students were absorbed in the nearby hotels and lodges. Students were placed at hotels and lodges within the area for their practicals and they are required to produce a portfolio of evidence with comments from their supervisors. The portfolio was used as source evidence when they searched for employment.

3.5 Technical and Vocational Education and Training Colleges Governors Council

Background: The TVET Colleges Governors Council was established in 2007 as an Employer Organisation constituted by 50 TVET Colleges. The organization was also registered with the Department of Labour as an employer. The organisational structure comprised of 23 National Executive Committee (NEC) members, five National Office Bearers, with 18 members from nine Provincial Working Committees.

Challenges: The 50 TVET Colleges were under financial distress, with a consolidated underfunding of R4.7 billion. Part of the current underfunding was caused by the failure of government through the National Treasury to fund Colleges as per the approved national funding norms and standard for Colleges. Each student was supposed to be funded 80 percent of the programme cost. However, only 54 percent of the programme costs were subsidised. Almost 230 000 students enrolled in TVET Colleges were not funded. TVET Colleges did not benefit from any additional subsidies from the government at the time of the “no fee increase for 2016” as announced by the President in 2015.  Only universities benefitted. The TVET Colleges were excluded from the debt relief programme as announced by the President including the historic debt relief programme.

The TVET Colleges were by the end of the 2014/15 financial year sitting with R1.2 billion student debt on their books. Furthermore, not all students enrolled at TVET Colleges were funded by NSFAS. The TVET Colleges were not receiving any grant allocation for infrastructure development, while universities did. As a result, Colleges were experiencing challenges with dilapidated buildings which they could not maintain or renovate. Colleges also had challenges of unqualified lecturers, lecturers without industry exposure, and it was difficult to attract and retain experts from industry and business as a result of low salary packages offered by the College sector. The stagnation of the curriculum, which was not relevant to community and labour market needs, and insufficient student accommodation and classrooms remained as serious challenges for the sector.

TVET Funding Norms and Standards: The TVET Colleges were not funded in accordance with approved norms and standards which was 80 percent of programme costs per student instead they received only received 54 percent of programme costs. The net effect was that Colleges were R4.7 billion underfunded and operated at a deficit. The current funding model did not address or take into consideration the following: Costs for learning materials and textbooks, which were currently provided for free to students; costs for student material for simulations; costs for equipment and tools for students-infrastructure development and maintenance. However, universities were allocated infrastructure grants, and financially rewarded for operating in rural areas. The historically disadvantaged institution (HDI) grant was recommended for Colleges to address issues of infrastructure, inclusive of, classrooms, workshops, equipment, ablution and issues of ICT infrastructure and branding.

Budget not comparable with national policies and entry level to TVET Colleges and curriculum relevance: There was no budget for the implementation of the White Paper for Post-School Education and Training (WPPSET), which led to non-compliance with enrolment targets as prescribed by the policy. There was also no budget to meet the NDP targets. The NC(V) programme entry requirements were not appealing to learners who passed Grade 10-12. The current curriculum of the TVET sector was not industry-centred and it was also not responsive to community service delivery and labour market needs.

Legislative challenges / two centres of power at College level: The CETC Act provided the Minister with powers to appoint executive management, with the performance agreement signed by the Director-General. The dual reporting obstructed Councils from holding Principals and executive management accountable since the employer was the Minister, and the DHET presided over issues of performance and discipline management and not Councils. Councils had no role to play over Principals and executive management performance in terms of the CETC Act. Councils were disempowered by the Act from applying any consequence management regarding discipline and/or performance of such employees, and the same applied to all employees, for example, lecturers and support staff.

Recommendations: The TVET Colleges Governors Coouncil recommended that the CETC Act should be reviewed to provide Councils with powers to appoint Principals, executive management and staff on behalf of the Minister; to allow Councils to sign performance agreements with the executive management on behalf of the Minister and the Director General; to compel the National Treasury to fund TVET Colleges in accordance with the approved funding norms and standards; to allow the state to subsidies the innovative programs that are developed by Colleges, which are responsive and relevant to community and labour market needs and promote inclusive economic growth; to give Colleges infrastructure grants; to consider funding for TVET College students historical debts (R1.2 billion); to consider including student workplace exposure as part of Treasury Regulations on procurement; to review the current funding model to include funding for student simulations for purposes of undertaking practicals; to develop  a national policy on internship programme; building TVET Colleges ICT infrastructure; to support the “adopt-a-College” strategy by industry and state owned entities; need for training / advocacy of the DHET officials on governance and for more support for WIL opportunities; to promote the sharing of resources within the PSET sector for effective utilisation and peer learning and support within the TVET sector.

 

3.6 University of Limpopo

3.6.1 Student Representative Council

Curriculum and fees: The SRC proposed for a central curriculum for all universities to end the inequality that existed within the system. The SRC noted that the students from the former white institutions got more employment opportunities than students from historically disadvantaged institutions (HDIs). There should be standard tuition fees for all universities. The majority of students came to the University because of lower fees and lower admission requirements. The curriculum of universities should be standardized to reduce inequality.

Police brutality: Students were brutalized and shot during the student protests. The University should not bring police when students were protesting peacefully. Students should be allowed to protest at the university without fear of victimization from the police.

Corruption and nepotism in the campus: Certain students were favoured and admitted at the University without meeting the proper admission requirements.

 

3.6.2 Union (National Education and Health Allied Workers Union)

Relationship between management and union: The union leadership said that the relationship between the union and the University management was regulated by the recognition agreement, and the union was able to raise issues affecting workers with management. Based on the provisions of the recognition agreement, the salary negotiations for 2017 had been concluded without any difficulties.

Insourcing: There had been a national call for insourcing of workers by universities to improve their conditions of service. The University extended a gesture of R1000 to provide additional support to the outsourced employees. There were challenges in the negotiations with the service providers, as they were unable to uplift the conditions of service of employees.

Temporary employees: The University employed workers on a temporary basis for a period of three years or more and this amounted to unfair labour practices. This practice had a potential of putting the university in a negative light as it was illegal.

Budgetary constraints: The University was losing quality employees to other universities. As a result, the University was not delivering quality service. The subsidy allocation from government was inadequate, and it was difficult to compete with other universities in payment of salaries. The government should pay special attention to the University and increase its subsidy.

3.6.3 Disabled students organisation

The students with disabilities had for the first time in 2017 wheeled themselves around the campus, while they were informed to wait for an SMS from NSFAS to purchase motorized wheelchairs. The 2017 academic year resumed in February. However, students had not received their allowances owing to the new system of online application introduced by NSFAS. Students with disabilities were expected to thrive against all odds. However, this could not be realized without the necessary support such as books and other learning materials.

The delays by NSFAS in paying allowances to blind and partially-sighted students was noted a serious concern. The blind students were forced to walk to the computer lab to access computers with JAWS, which was not compatible with NSFAS system. The students were not able to sign NSFAS loan agreement/SOP forms because the system would not allow them to do so. The online system was disadvantaging the students with disabilities as some were forced to sleep with empty stomachs. Students were forced to sign affidavits whenever they lost their mobile phones and changed numbers. Students requested a meeting with NSFAS and threatened to take the matter to the Deputy-Minister of Social Development in case NSFAS failed to meet with them.

 

 

3.6.4 Management

Background: The University was established in 1960 as part of the apartheid grand plan for separate development, and it is a medium-sized, rural based University, located in Mankweng, 30 kilometres from Polokwane in Limpopo. The University offered a range of formative and professional programmes in humanities, health sciences, science and agriculture and management and law. The University had pockets of research excellence in niche areas, although it was still classified as a Historically Disadvantaged Institution (HDI). The University had 1 800 staff members and over 20 000 students largely drawn from rural communities in Limpopo and Mpumalanga. The University has operated on a budget of R1.2 billion annually.

70 percent of the University students were supported by NSFAS and a very small proportion through bursaries. 70 – 80 percent of the students were first generation university students. The University charged the lowest student fees in the higher education sector, below the Higher Education Inflation.

Governance:  The governance of the University was consistent with the relevant provisions of the Higher Education Act and the University Statute. The Council was the highest governing authority of the University. Senate’s main function was academic governance and oversight. The Institutional Forum would be reconstituted in April 2017 and the SRC was constituted in March 2017. The various structures worked jointly in a collaborative relationship

Infrastructure: The Infrastructure Efficiency Grant made a significant contribution to the University’s current infrastructure base. The projects that were recently completed included: Extension of the Disabled Student Unit; Construction of the new student residence (Nkandla); supply and installation of stand-by generators; African Languages Laboratory; 1500 kilolitres reservoir and renovations of laboratories. The demand for infrastructure far exceeded the available capacity. Only a third of the 20 000 students were accommodated in the University student housing facilities.

2017 student registration: The registration period was incident-free at the University. Lectures and practicals commenced on 30 January 2017 and a series of first tests had been written. The University had been relatively stable, even at the height of student protests in 2016. The challenges with the 2017 registration included: walks-in; failure to meet minimum entry requirements as a result of wrong subject combinations or choices at Grade 12 level; limited career guidance at school; poor performance of learners in Maths and Science subjects and inability of students to pay upfront registration fees.

NSFAS new student-centred model: The feedback from NSFAS regarding the 2017 first-entering and returning students’ applications had been very slow, putting the registration activities at risk. The feedback on walk-in applications was also a challenge. Confirmation of exact amounts for the allowances by NSFAS had been poor. The capacity of NSFAS to handle a centralised application system stretched the University to the limit and it remained doubtful.

Student performance for 2016: 81 percent of students passed after the main exams at the University, and after the supplementary exam or winter/summer schools, the pass rates increased to 85.71 percent and 87.98 percent respectively. The pass rate increased to 92.86 percent after the completion of the special exams.

3.6.5 Site visit

Reakgona Disabled Student Unit: The University was among the first universities in the country to cater for the needs of students with disabilities. The building was 15 years old and it mainly catered for students with a variety of disabilities. The unit was producing braille material for the visually impaired and blind students. The University had 11 blind students registered in 2017 and the unit had six employees to assist over 140 disabled students at the University. The Committee was shown a demonstration of converting word documents into braille. The conversion process was rigorous with high quality assurance standards.

Limpopo Agro-food Technical Station (LATS): The station had laboratories that were used for nutrition analysis of different types of food products to client specification. The station was used to assist small and emerging farmers to process their food. The station had nine staff members with different specializations. It was also used for soil sample testing for analysis of nematodes in the soil or on the plants roots to identify the type of plant parasites attacking the plants. The laboratories assisted cooperatives and small businesses to develop their products for the market. Students who were doing research were using the station equipment to do their own analysis.

There were nine staff members at the station ranging from analysts, microbiologists, business development officer, project manager, research and development officer. There were many emerging farmers who were assisted by the station and some were already in business across the provinces. These were mostly businesses dealing with processing of indigenous foods and they also helped them with packaging and branding. They also do microbial analysis to identify the shelf-life of the product, as well as the bacteria that might affect the product.

Water Testing Laboratory: The laboratory was established in partnership with the Capricorn District Municipality for water quality testing. There were three filters in the laboratories, which were used to purify water. The laboratory was also used as an experiential training site for students, in particular those in water services.  The University was producing bottled still water for the University and other external clients.

Library: The library assisted 10 000 students daily and it was opened from 07h30 until 12h00 in the evening. The library had subject specialists for each faculty of the University. There were 23 online databases at the library and E-book collection. Students had access to the online database of the library even when they were off-campus, and the library online page was available on the institution’s website. The buying of electronic equipment was expensive since they were purchased with foreign currency, and the library required additional funding for this.

4. Observations

The Committee having interacted with the universities and TVET Colleges of Limpopo, made the following observations:

4.1 University of Venda

4.1.1 The good working relationship that existed between the management and the University stakeholders was commended.

4.1.2 The University was not affected by the #fees-must-fall protests in 2016 which disrupted the academic programme and led to damage of infrastructure. However, the students at the University began to protest in the third week of March 2017, owing to the non-payment of their allowances through the NSFAS sBux system. The Committee advised students to meet with NSFAS so that the challenges with the sBux system can be resolved.

4.1.3 The closure of the main entrance of the University by protesting students, which prevented the Committee from undertaking the on-site visit to the institution, was strongly condemned. Students were advised to return to class and to stop barricading the roads leading to the University.

4.1.4 The University was financially stable with investments which amounted to R600 million and net assets to the value of R2.5 billion. The net surpluses were invested for other key projects. Every student at the University was given a tablet.

4.1.5 Infrastructure spending and development at the University was increasing since 2008. However, the demand for additional lecture halls to accommodate more students for teaching and learning, remained a challenge. The University experienced a challenge of service providers who were abandoning infrastructure projects without completing them, and this created additional unforeseen expenditure and a backlog of unfinished projects.

4.1.6 The University continued to expand its infrastructure, although it did not have the title deed of the land on which the University was built. Part of the University’s property was situated on tribal land, and the process of obtaining title deed from the municipality had been dragging for years.

4.1.7 The University was embarking on a journey of becoming a full Comprehensive University, and the process required adequate funding and better facilities. The University was at 2 percent against the target of 4 percent in becoming a Comprehensive University. The University requested the Committee to assist in receiving a response from the DHET on the submitted plan, and funding as well as the CHE delays in the accreditation of some programmes.

4.1.8 The University indicated that it experienced an IT problem related to the loading of student data in its system for both new and returning students. Meanwhile, NSFAS also experienced challenges with its system for a period of two weeks, and it had to send officials to the University to assist students in signing their Loan Agreement Forms (LAF) manually. These IT incompatibilities contributed to the non-payment of allowances to new and returning students at the University. The NSFAS undertook to meet with the University management and SRC to resolve the outstanding issues.

4.1.9 The Committee expressed its concern about the rolling-out of the new student-centred model in particular the sBux system used for payment of food, transport and private accommodation allowances. There was animosity from students regarding the new student-centred model, due to the continuous delays in the payment of allowances. Students were proposing that the new system should be halted.

 

4.2 Sekhukhune TVET College

4.2.1 The College experienced underfunding for its operations, which impacted negatively on its ability to expand its human resource and infrastructure capacity. The College acquired the Apel Campus in 2016 which served a largely rural area with 29 nearby villages. However, the Apel Campus was a former Teacher Training College shared with the Limpopo Department of Education. The uncertainty about the ownership of the facility led to delays by the College in maintaining and refurbishing the dilapidated infrastructure.

4.2.2 The Greater Sekhukhune District was blessed with mineral wealth and untapped mineral deposits which had the potential of turning the region into one of the key economic hubs of the country. There were 21 mines operating in the area which was largely rural and poor. The College has served as a symbol of hope for more young people from the area to access employment opportunities that the region offered. However, the mining industry in the area was not opening its doors for learners to access employment and work integrated learning (WIL) opportunities.  The Committee was concerned that out of the 21 mines in the area, the College had partnership agreements with only three.

4.2.3 South Africa was expected to produce 30 000 artisans per annum by 2030 as per the NDP target. However, the role of the College in artisan training and development was inadequate. The College had to date produced only 18 artisans as electricians and 10 in diesel mechanics. It was concerning that the College was not able to produce the required number of artisans for the mining sector.

4.2.4 The College Council and management did not have a good working relationship with the unions. There was no stakeholder’s forum to resolve staff and student grievances at the College.

4.2.5 The students complained that they had not yet received their sBux allowances from 2016 up to the beginning of the 2017 academic year. The College prioritised returning students for NSFAS bursaries, and this was contrary to the DHET NSFAS Bursary Guidelines. One of the key challenges raised by the College was that the demand for financial assistance far exceeded the available funding. Therefore, priority had been given to students already in the system as their chances of progressing were much higher compared to the first time entering students.

4.2.6 The College did not provide transport/shuttle service to students from the nearby villages and this affected the 80 percent attendance policy. The Committee was concerned that students were forced to walk up to 10 kilometres to reach the College, and this was dangerous particularly for female students.

4.2.7 The College was unable to attract and retain qualified lecturers owing to its rural location and its inability to compete with the private sector on payment of salaries. As a result, it did not have adequate artisans to train learners in the workshops.

4.2.8 The College had an acute shortage of student housing for its student population, and it had closed its catering service which provided food for students in campus residences. The occupancy rate at CS Barlow and CN Phatudi campuses was very low due to student preferring private accommodation in order to claim accommodation allowances. The College was also unable to expand its infrastructure and student housing facilities as a result of insufficient funding.

4.2.9 It was concerning that some lecturers arrived late in the classrooms for teaching while the Committee was undertaking a site visit of the College. The Committee noted that consequence management and accountability should be strengthened at the College.

4.2.10 The College was operating above the 63 percent cap imposed on employment costs. Expenditure on compensation of employees at the College constituted 68 percent of operational costs owing to underfunding. The College was allocated 54 percent funding for its operations against the DHET norm of 84 percent. The College had a budget deficit of R17 million and 928 unfunded FTEs which costed R23 million.

4.2.11 It was disconcerting for the Committee to discover that the College had 237 outstanding Diplomas and 485 outstanding certificates. The College indicated that the certification backlog was as a result of discrepancies in the certification processes at the DHET.

4.2.12 The Committee was concerned about the overall certification rate for the NC(V) programme at the College, which was 26 percent in 2016 and 51 percent for the Report 191 programme. The College admitted that it was not doing well against its set targets on academic performance.

4.2.13 The Committee was concerned about the outstanding migration issues, in particular inadequate implementation of the conversion of temporary lecturers to be permanent.

 

 

4.3 Capricorn TVET College

4.3.1 The College was under good management and governance, and there was a good working relationship between management and the College stakeholders.

4.3.2 Students at the College complained about the late payment of NSFAS allowances from 2016 until the beginning of the 2017 academic year, and the non-payment of allowances by the College management since 2014.

4.3.3 The budget of the College was reduced by R10 million by the DHET and this had a negative impact on its operations. The College had to utilise some of its reserves to cover unfunded mandates.

4.3.4 The allowable compensation of employee’s budget allocation allocated could not accommodate the creation of full time teaching posts for NATED/ Report 191 programmes. Most of these lecturers were part time and there were no benefits attached to their employment contracts.

4.3.5 There were inconsistencies in the payment of IQMS and PMDS benefits to employees at the College. The College indicated that some employees allocated themselves scores which could not be supported by evidence, and this led to the backlog in the processing of payments.

4.3.6 The Ramokgopa Campus of the College was situated on tribal land and there were uncertainties about the ownership of the land. The College had appointed land surveyors, town and regional planners and conveyancers to take the process forward.

4.3.7 It was noted with concern that the College Principal was paid almost equivalent to principals of secondary schools which had fewer learners. The DHET indicated that the job evaluation process for the College Principal posts was being undertaken and the outcomes would be communicated.

4.4 Waterberg TVET College

4.4.1 The management of the College had a good working relationship with the stakeholders, and the College was under good governance and management.

4.4.2 The students complained about the late payment of their allowances by NSFAS. The College indicated that 90 percent of the students came from poor rural areas and most qualified for NSFAS bursaries. The biggest portion of the funding was transferred to tuition fees and priority was given to students who passed their subjects. The money left did not cover transport and accommodation costs because of the inadequate funding to cover the tuition fees of all the needy students.

4.4.3 The College was affected negatively by the sharing of one of its campus with the Limpopo Department of Education. The provincial department used the facility to train teachers during holidays as a teacher training centre.

4.4.4 The College was funded on the basis of 2016 enrolments and this had an impact on its operations and ability to recruit additional staff.

4.4.5 The College was rated number 12 in the NC(V) pass rate out of the 50 TVET Colleges in the country.

4.4.6 The unions complained about the delays in the payment of markers. The DHET indicated that an agreement was reached to pay markers for the November 2016 examinations, and the outstanding payment was as a result of incomplete information submitted by markers.

4.4.7 The placement of students in the workplaces remained a challenge for the College, especially the NC(V) graduates. However, the College indicated that it had a good programme qualification mix (PQM) which responded to the local needs. The Programmes such as administration and marketing did have a good placement record.

4.4.8 The training given to the students at the Hotel School of the College was commended by the Committee. The students also offered an excellent catering service at the College’s restaurant.

4.5 TVET Colleges Governors Council

4.5.1 It was noted that the TVET Colleges were unable to attract staff in the scarce skills owing to low remuneration in the TVET sector in comparison to the private sector.

4.5.2 The TVETCGC raised a concern about the Continuing Education and Training Colleges Act, 2006 (Act No. 16 of 2006) which gave power to the Minister to be the main employer in the TVET sector. They indicated that College Councils had limited powers, and could not exercise sufficient oversight over management since they were not employers. They proposed that the Act be reviewed to correct the balance of power between the Minister and the College Councils.

4.5.3 The TVETCGC said that TVET Colleges should receive financial support as universities. In the absence of support grants to expand its programmes, the TVET sector remained seriously challenged.

4.5.4 The Committee noted that TVET Colleges should offer programmes that were aligned with the 21st century needs as well as government priorities.

4.5.5 The Committee noted that the state did not fund any programmes outside the NC(V) and NATED programmes in TVET Colleges. This posed a challenge to Colleges to offer other innovative programmes that respond to community needs.

4.5.6 The TVETCGC indicated that R4 billion remained with KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education during the migration process of TVET Colleges to the DHET.

4.6 University of Limpopo

4.6.1 The management had a good working relationship with the university stakeholders.

4.6.2 The effect of the late payment of NSFAS allowances was a serious concern in particular for students with disabilities as they were unable to purchase the necessary learning equipment.

4.6.3 The new student-centred model, in particular the requirement to sign the loan agreement forms online, was a serious challenge for the blind and visually impaired students.

4.6.4 The University had pockets of excellence in its research and innovation initiatives, which also contributed to its ability to generate third stream income.

4.6.5 The University was commended for its winter and summer school initiatives, which provided students with additional tuition opportunities and improved their results.

4.6.6 The student debt at the University amounted to R213 million and the majority of students relied on NSFAS funding for studying. The University took a decision not to exclude academically deserving students based on financial constraints.

 

5. Summary

The Committee visited two universities and three TVET Colleges of Limpopo and also met with the TVET Colleges Governors Council. The key objectives of the oversight visit were to assess these institutions on governance, administration and finances. The Committee had an opportunity to engage with the institutions council, management, unions, student representative councils and institutional forums. The Committee obtained a balanced view of the issues presented by both management and stakeholders, and also undertook site visits of the institutions to assess the progress made in infrastructure development and expansion. The oversight visit was also aligned with the Committee’s mandate of exercising robust oversight over the post-school education and training (PSET) institutions to assess their progress in achieving the National Development Plan (NDP) targets and other government priorities.

The challenges faced by the TVET Colleges of Limpopo were similar and cross cutting. Underfunding remained a major challenge for all the TVET Colleges that met with the Committee. The challenge of underfunding contributed to other main concerns/difficulties of Colleges such expansion of infrastructure and student housing, attracting and retaining suitably qualified lecturers and financial assistance for needy students. The delays by NSFAS in paying allowances to students in the TVET sector was highlighted as a serious concern by all the SRCs that interacted with the Committee. This was unacceptable in view of vast numbers of students who were eligible for NSFAS funding, but failed to obtain financial assistance. Up to 80 percent of the students enrolled at these Colleges qualified for NSFAS. The management was however faced with a challenge of having to cater for unfunded students, which led to the depletion of their financial resources.

The uncertainty about the ownership of some College campuses remained unresolved, and the Colleges were not willing to invest funds in maintaining and refurbishing the infrastructure at these facilities. The Colleges visited by the Committee had huge potential, and required support and additional funding from the DHET to fulfil their mandate of skills development. The unwillingness of the nearby mining industries to open their workplaces for work integrated learning (WIL) and employment opportunities for College graduates was a matter which needed urgent attention.

The universities visited by the Committee showed vast improvement in their core business, which is teaching and learning, research (knowledge production) and community engagement. The universities were under good management and governance, and their financial status was stable. The delays in the payment of sBux allowances to students also affected the students at universities. The rolling out of the NSFAS new student-centred model in universities was accompanied by systemic challenges that were similar to the one faced by TVET Colleges. The universities were also improving on their research output and had pockets of excellence which also contributed to their ability to raise third stream income.

 

6. Recommendations

The Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training having undertaken an oversight visit to the post-school education and training institutions of Limpopo, recommends that the Minister of Higher Education and Training consider the following:

6.1 National Student Financial Aid Scheme

6.1.1 The students from the TVET Colleges and universities complained about the delays in the payment of the sBux allowances that cover travel, food and transport. The Committee recommends that an evaluation and review be undertaken with regard to the functioning of the Financial Aid Committees of the TVET Colleges on the administration of the fund in order to avoid TVET students not benefitting in an equitable manner.

6.1.2 The Committee should receive a report from both the NSFAS and DHET on steps taken to improve the roll-out of the new student-centred model at the institutions where the Committee conducted the oversight visit as well as improvements that need to be made for students with disabilities in particular.

6.2 Curriculum

6.2.1 The students from both the TVET Colleges and universities complained about the irrelevance of the curriculum to the industry needs. The Department should brief the Committee on progress made to address outdated curriculum at various post-school education and training institutions.

6.3 Quality of lecturers

6.3.1 The students at TVET Colleges raised concerns about the quality of the lecturers and their inadequate teaching and technical skills. The Department should submit reports to the Committee on its plans to improve the lecturing skills especially in the TVET sector.

6.3.2 The Committee should convene a Joint Meeting with the PC on Basic Education to discuss the steps in place to improve lecturer training.

6.4 Land and infrastructure

6.4.1 The TVET Colleges raised concerns about the sharing of facilities with the Limpopo Department of Education which impacted on teaching and learning. These facilities were the former Teacher Training Colleges and belonged to the Provincial Department of Education and Public Works. The Colleges were unable to fully utilise these facilities since they were under the jurisdiction of these departments. The Committee recommends that the Provincial Departments of Education and Public Works report on steps taken to implement agreements between themselves and the Department on the transfer of vacant buildings and land towards the Colleges as well steps taken by the Department to ensure the implementation of the agreements.

6.5 Pending results

6.5.1 The students in TVET Colleges complained about outstanding or pending results owing to missing internal assessment marks. The Department should report on steps taken to ensure that Colleges are held accountable for not submitting ICASS marks.

6.6 TVET capacitation

6.6.1 The TVET Colleges raised concerns about their inability to execute their mandate effectively owing to funding shortfalls. The Department should present a progress report on the new funding model for TVET Colleges to the Committee.

6.7 Insourcing

6.7.1 The Committee recommends that the universities and unions work towards finding consensus on insourcing of service staff.

Report to be considered.

 

 

 

 

 

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