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

The Deputy Minister was talking in the course of an oversight visit to the post-school education and education (PSET) establishments within the Western Cape this week.

Gondwe described the TVET colleges as important for job creation and youth skills development within the state.

The Deputy Minister visited the West Coast College Vredenburg Campus, along with the Cape Peninsula {University of Technology (CPUT) Bellville Campus in Cape Town.

Gondwe's visits targeted at examining the state of readiness of better education institutions across the nation, ahead on the 2025 educational year.

During the visit at West Coast College, she encouraged learners to get delight in attaining artisan abilities as they offer good entrepreneurship alternatives.

"I'm very encouraged by what I'm seeing at TVET colleges, I believe they are the future of this country. TVETs are producing artisans with much needed skills [and] also offer opportunities for learners to acquire future skills, such as robotics, AI [Artificial intelligence], and coding," Gondwe said.

At the second part of the visit, college students at CPUT expressed fears about college student residences and other amenities. The Deputy Minister directed the get more info establishment to work with the Student Representative Council (SRC), to speedily solve the identified problems.

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

Throughout the visits, the Deputy Minister continues to be accompanied by key senior officers from Higher Education and Training, and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).

The Deputy Minister’s dedicated Help Desk has also formed part of the delegation, assisting with all higher education related queries on get more info each visit.

The problem of funding and administrative difficulties confronted with the NSFAS was within the spotlight during the Free State leg western tvet college with the visits.

"NSFAS needs to get its act together, in order to ensure that student allowances are paid on time with no delays. Delays cause serious challenges for learners; learners need allowances to eat and to buy hygiene products. This is important for their sense of wellbeing and dignity," Gondwe said.

Gondwe tvet colleges open for applications embarked on the state of readiness visits following a plan of action, announced by Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle Nkabane at the special meeting of the Post Education and Training sector held in January 2025, to establish the state of readiness for the 2025 academic year.

The Deputy Minister's oversight is expected to continue in other provinces, with North West click here higher education institutions being the next on the list.
– SAnews.gov.za