Northern Cape Business 2017-18 edition

OVERVIEW Education Sol

OVERVIEW Education Sol Plaatje University has opened in Kimberley. The Square Kilometre Array radio telescope project under way in the Karoo is having far-reaching effects on education and training in the Northern Cape. Bursaries for local pupils to tertiary institutions, the appointment of a specialist mathematics and science teacher at Carnarvon High School and internships for locals in optical fibre technology are just some of the spinoffs already experienced. SKA SA, the national Department of Science and Technology and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research’s Meraka Institute have trained 17 teachers in the use of tablets and 40 young people have, since 2011, received bursaries to study skills that will enable them to work in radio astronomy. The Namaqua Maths and Science project (NaMaSci) is a partnership between the Northern Cape Department of Education and the University of Stellenbosch which aims to help students in the Namakwa district gain access to tertiary study. Tutors offer holiday classes in Springbok. After years of lobbying for a university, the Northern Cape now has its own place of higher learning, Sol Plaatje University, named after the great intellectual, writer and advocate for equal rights. The curriculum covering degrees and diplomas is presented in four schools: Humanities (including Heritage Studies), Natural and Applied Sciences (Data Sciences, ICT), Education and Economics and Management (BComm and Diploma in Retail Business Management). The provincial government is implementing its Northern Cape Information Society Strategy in partnership with the university. Astronomy-related courses are planned for the future to dovetail with the Square Kilometre Array. ONLINE RESOURCES Northern Cape Department of Education: www.ncdoe.ncpg.gov.za Northern Cape Rural TVET College: www.ncrtvet.com Northern Cape Urban TVET College: ww.ncutvet.edu.za Sol Plaatje University: www.spu.ac.za SECTOR INSIGHT The SKA project is fast-tracking educational opportunity. The Northern Cape Urban TVET College comprises three campuses in Kimberley: City Campus, Moremogolo Campus and Phatsimang Campus, where teacher training is done. At City Campus, students have access to three departments: business studies, engineering studies and a business unit that organises short courses. At Moremogolo Campus students are offered courses in either the business studies or skills departments. The Northern Cape Rural TVET College has campuses at Kathu, Upington, De Aar, Kuruman and Namakwaland. These colleges offer students courses in finance, economics and accounting; engineering; IT and computer science; management; hospitality; marketing; and tourism. NCRTVET College has a variety of part-time programmes and short skills programmes delivered in the form of learnerships, internships or apprenticeships. This enables adults and employed people to study after hours or to do enrichment courses. NORTHERN CAPE BUSINESS 2017/18 60

Banking and financial services Banks are finding ways to service even very remote rural areas. OVERVIEW In a province with a high proportion of rural citizens such as the Northern Cape, the prospect of Postbank being upgraded to a fullservice bank is positive news. In 2016 the bank (part of the South African Post Office, SAPO) received a first-level licence. Once a board of directors has been appointed and a company formed, the Reserve Bank is likely to grant the full licence. The current Postbank focusses on taking deposits and savings accounts. Postbank has secured a R3.7-billion loan to enable it to open its own loan book. The large geographical footprint of the Post Office will make the bank easily accessible to even remote parts of the country. South Africa’s four big retail banks (Nedbank, Absa, Standard Bank and First National Bank) have a solid presence in all of the major towns in the province. Relative newcomer, Capitec, is rapidly moving towards being part of a Big Five. With the renewable energy sector being actively pursued in South Africa, a whole new sector in need of project funding has opened up for banks. The Northern Cape has attracted a very high percentage of independent power producers which have won the right to build power plants, especially in solar power sector. With agriculture being such an important part of the provincial economy, each of the established banks has specialists in the province and dedicated units such as Nedbank Agribusiness. Focus areas SECTOR INSIGHT South Africa’s newest stock exchange listed Senwes on its first day in action. • The multi-billion-rand stokvel market is attracting interest. for this unit are agronomy (grain, oil seeds, sugar and cotton), livestock (including game farming), horticulture (fruit and vegetables, for example), and secondary agriculture which covers agricultural processing and storage. Most agricultural companies in the province have financing and services divisions. This provides real competition for the retail banks, despite their specialised agricultural desks. The Land 61 NORTHERN CAPE BUSINESS 2017/18