What is Skills Development
Skills development is the process of identifying the skills gap that exists within a company and finding methods to develop or reduce the shortage of these skills. In South Africa skills development is an important element as it aims to provide the economically active population with the right skills to grow the economy. The objective is to focus on the previously disadvantaged, by improving,
(1) Hard Skills, which comprise knowledge that is based on a field of study or technical skills, and
(2) Soft skills, which relate to personality and are usually transferable.
The following Acts and Regulations are the custodians and implementation managers for affective skills training and education in South Africa:
- Skills Development Act
- Skills Development Levies Act
- Employment Equity Act
- Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE)
Skills Development through B-BBEE is particularly targeted at:
- Contributing to the achievement of the country’s economic growth and social development goals, which will enrich the creation of decent work and sustainable livelihoods.
- Promoting the development of an industrial skills base in critical sectors of production and value-added manufacturing, which are largely labour-intensive industries.
- Supporting ‘Professional, Vocational, Technical and Academic Learning programmes, achieved by means of professional placements, work- integrated learning, apprenticeships, learnerships and internships, which meet the critical needs for economic growth and development.
- Strengthening the skills and human resource base by encouraging skills development initiatives, which emphasise skills development and career pathing for all working people, thereby supporting employment creation.
Types of programmes
Essential Skills Development (ESD) provides strategic comprehensive Skills advisory to corporates in order to achieve meaningful training and skills transfer. Our programmes contribute to your company’s skills development plan.
Our Services Offer:
Bursary Management:
Bursaries are generally for those studying towards a degree. Each bursary will have a different requirement and will be offered with the intention to graduate and employ the recipient. We believe it is imperative that clients support bursaries in line with their transformation initiatives to maximize the social impact.
Learnership Management:
Learnerships provide the employer and employee with a good mix of opportunity and skills development. The Employer trains the employee with the required skills, whilst the employee/learner gains highly desirable skills for work opportunities. It is a 3-way agreement between an employer, training provider and employee/learner. Learners can be sourced from the client’s current workforce or from the job market and while employment is offered for the duration of the learnership on a fixed term contract, subsequent employment is at the discretion of the employer.
Skills Programmes:
SETA accredited courses which provide learners with credits towards a qualification. The programmes offered are ideal in introducing individuals who are starting a venture or in the early stages of setting up a company. The courses are also valuable for job seekers who require a better understanding of the dynamics of managing a business.
