ICT skills boom promised

Johannesburg, 14 Aug 2009

The ICT industry will heed president Jacob Zuma's call to ensure the timely implementation of skills programmes to deal with the effects of the economic crisis.

This is according to the Information Systems Electronics Telecommunication Technologies Sector Education Training Authority (Isett Seta).

The statement follows the release of government's national response to the impact of the economic crisis. The “Framework Response to the Economic Crisis” sets out several programmes, which government says are key to its response to the economic situation.

Government has set aside R2.4 billion to fund initiatives dealing with the economic crisis, which will be placed in a National Jobs Fund. The funding will be sourced from resources in the National Skills Fund and the Unemployment Insurance Fund.

All Setas have been requested to set aside funds for training, which will cover skills that would be useful to a relevant company or industry.

Zuma, in his announcement of the framework, said funding would cover skills useful to companies concerned and generic skills - with a particular focus on basic education and training, as well as ICT skills.

Isett Seta says it will ensure the programmes initiated by government are addressed “quickly and effectively”.

The authority notes it needs to ensure that whatever funding is allocated addresses skills requirements, which it might have previously neglected. It adds that the president's mention of the sector could be an indication of a “severe shortage of skills” and points to the need for faster skills development.

The authority says it welcomes government's move and it will make sure the new initiatives enhance its current initiatives. Collaboration with other Setas is also necessary to ensure the goals and objectives are met, and the plans have maximum effect.

Zuma added in his speech that the global crisis is biting deep in SA, and measures to soften the impact of the crisis on workers and the poor are important. Growing job losses and rising debt requires clear and purposeful action to respond to the needs of the people, he said.

Industry response

Meanwhile, Altech announced the accreditation of its academy's higher education training programmes as learnerships by Isett Seta and the Department of Labour. The Altech Academy was opened last year and currently has 80 students.

The accreditation will allow Altech to train and develop engineers up to doctoral level of study with an internationally recognised qualification. The Altech Academy covers the field of technology management and innovation.

Oupa Mopaki, CEO of Isett Seta, notes the success of the Altech Academy lies in its ability to meet the authority's standards.

“What makes a success of the learnership is the preparation followed in terms of acquiring work experience and the execution methodology that has been followed, both from a learner induction process and workplace-mentor matching, in terms of the Isett Seta learnership requirements.”

Craig Venter, patron of the Altech Academy and CEO of Altech, says the academy's training is centred on empowering employees to gain relevant experience.