OVERVIEW Education and
OVERVIEW Education and training Tertiary campuses in Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha are growing. A R386-million campus is to be built in Mitchells Plain to serve that suburb, Strandfontein and surrounding areas. False Bay TVET College has been offering classes in part of a primary school for some time but the transfer of land by the City of Cape Town in June 2020 allows the college to start the design phase for the new campus in the heart of Mitchells Plain. It will eventually cater for more than 5 000 students. The new Mitchells Plain Campus will complement the College’s existing campus presence in Khayelitsha, Fish Hoek, Westlake and Muizenberg. Programmes will be offered in tourism, creative media, business BPO, wholesale and retail and the services sectors. Bridging classes will also be presented for young people who do not meet entry requirements. At the same time, work is underway on the upgrade and expansion of the Swartklip Campus, pictured, which lies on the border of Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha. Funding for the new campus, which will have an engineering focus, came from the National Skills Fund. The plan is to accommodate 3 000 students which would contribute to the National Development Plan’s goal of producing 30 000 skilled artisans per year. The College has a lease agreement with Airports Company South Africa to use the existing buildings at the old Denel Site. Building has also been happening in the school sector: three new schools were built in 2019/20 and two replacement schools were opened in Crestway and Phillipi. The Provincial Government’s Department of Transport and Public Works started work on 76 new Grade R and Expansion classrooms at 22 schools, catering for about 2 800 pupils. A further 197 mobile classrooms were delivered. The province’s I-CAN centres allow for public access to digital skills programmes, WiFi and business services. The centres are divided into zones (including Create, Study and Learn) and printing, graphic design and laminating services are available. Online learning is one of the world’s fastest-growing sectors and the investment of -million by Construct in a new Cape Town office is evidence that the trend has come to the Western Cape. The Construct Learning Lab supports universities in Boston, Doha and Oxford as well as companies and government bodies. The company expects to increase its staff complement by 150 over three years. Two Western Cape research institutions have made large investments in research infrastructure. A Biomedical Research SECTOR INSIGHT A Centres of Specialisation Programme is targeting priority skills. Institute is being built by Stellenbosch University at a cost of R1-billion and the University of Cape Town plans to move its Neuroscience Institute, which it runs in partnership with Groote Schuur Hospital, into a new building. An innovation laboratory, clinical and training spaces and an innovation space where researchers can interact are part of the plans for the new facility. The University of Cape Town has more than 21 500 students, 720 permanent staff and 39 A-rated researchers (40% of South Africa’s total). Stellenbosch University is linked to Stellenbosch’s growing reputation as a technology hub. The University of the Western Cape is home to several national research bodies. These institutions, plus the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, produce approximately 12 000 science, technology, engineering and mathematics graduates every year and host 11 000 students from other African countries. WESTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2021 40
OVERVIEW University education is available in George through the Nelson Mandela University (NMU): Saasveld is home to the School of Natural Resource Management and the York Street Campus delivers courses in business and social science, accounting and business management. SARETEC offers industryspecific training in a new economic sector. The South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre is managed by the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (Bellville campus) but it collaborates with several other institutions and private companies. Unisa, the country’s biggest distance learning institution, has a campus in Cape Town and a service centre in George. Airports Company SA (ACSA), the City of Cape Town and the False Bay TVET College in Westlake have combined to offer residents of Blikkiesdorp a chance to learn skills in brick-laying, house-building, scaffolding and health and education. ACSA is investing R5-million in the 12-month certification project and the Construction Education and Training Authority (CETA) will channel funds to False Bay College for training. Centres of Specialisation Programme A Centres of Specialisation Programme has been introduced by the Department of Higher Education and Training to tackle priority skills. The Swartklip campus mentioned above will focus on training riggers and mechanical fitters. With the oil and gas sector expected to grow rapidly in the near future, trained artisans can expect to find employment quickly. The College of Cape TVET is concentrating on plumbing and automotive motor mechanics. ONLINE RESOURCES Apprenticeship Game Changer: www.westerncape.gov.za Centres of Specialisation: www.dhet.gov.za SA Renewable Energy Technology Centre: www.saretec.org.za TVET colleges: www.tvetcolleges.co.za The College of Cape Town has seven campuses from the city centre to Guguletu and Wynberg. A new welding academy in Thornton was opened with support from the merSETA (Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services SETA). Northlink College is in the northern suburbs of Cape Town. Outside of the Cape metropole, Boland College looks after Stellenbosch, Worcester, Paarl and Caledon, while the Southern Cape College covers a wide area, from George to Beaufort West. The West Coast College also has a big catchment area. Boland College participates in an Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) run by the South African Chefs’ Association. ■ 41 WESTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2021
