Partnerships

Together Stronger – The Partnership Route

How can Partnerships between Public and Private Institutions improve the shortage of qualified artisans and provide opportunity for skills training?

The National Development Plan (NDP) emphasizes the creating of opportunities that each person needs to be capable to live the life they desire.  Education and Skills are some of these critical opportunities. In essence, the key objective of the NDP is to ease the high unemployment situation in South Africa that will ease poverty and rectify the uneven and skewed growth and development of the current work force.

Taking this emphasis to the forefront – The National Skills Development Plan III (NSDSIII) calls for“ Partnerships between employers, Public Education Institutions (TVET Colleges, Universities, Universities of Technology), private training providers and SETAs to be promoted so that integration of education and training becomes a reality experienced by all South Africans”
The main objectives as the NSDSIII emphasizes, with partnerships will be the following:

• Improving the  placement of both the students and graduates especially from TVET Colleges;
• Securing additional financial resources for a programme or activities
• To offer academic or administrative staff collaboration opportunities to expand their expertise

Legal documents that are part of any partnership agreement will be the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) which is legally binding the partners and the Service Level Agreement (SLA) where a service with terms and conditions or a programme with a specific contract is formed.

The categories of partnerships of Motheo TVET College include Service Providers, Workplace Providers, Funders and especially working closely with all SETAS. International Partners are adding value to the establishment.  Partners contribute resources, sharing benefits, deliver an input on strategies, share resource burdens and costs.  The building of capacity to meet strategic objectives and to be able to deliver our mandate are the drive behind partnerships.

Via the partnerships and collaboration a variety of successful Learnerships were completed.  A few to mention NQF Levels 2 – 4 Water and Waste Water Process Control, Informal Traders Upliftment Project Training, Leadership and Character Building Skills Programme, Plumbing and Electrical Training NQF L 4, Professional Cookery NQF Level 4, Professional Driving NQF Level 3 , Mix Farming and Animal Production NQF Levels 2 – 3.

The international accredited Applied Accounting Technician South Africa NQF Levels 2 – 5 Learnership with the BankSETA as the funder, is worth mentioning.

Close collaboration with industries for the placing of  Motheo TVET College N6 certificate  and Learnership students to be able to obtain the necessary work experience  for diploma purposes are essential.  Relationships with Municipalities, Protea Hotel group, ESDL Plumbing, Government

departments such as Health, Education, Public Works, Social Development, Sports, Arts and Culture, Treasury,  the Premier’s Office, South African Police Force, FNB, Standard Bank and a variety of NGO’s, guest houses.  A variety of SETAS are involved in the paying of stipends to these students e.g SASSETA, EDTP, TETA SETA’s.

International Partners are linked  with to open new horizons in gaining knowledge and sharing of  best experiences.  The British Council partnership is adding much value to the operational activities of Motheo TVET College. Leadership Development took place via a visit to West Lothian College in Scotland .  Renewable energy Curriculum Development knowledge is shared with Northlink College in Cape Town and the connection with Colleg Gwent in Wales.

Training of skills at Grootvlei Correctional Servies  is made possible by AgriSETA.  MerSETA funded projects such as Building and Civil Engineering Construction, Lecturer and student training is taking place at Centlec.

Via the partnership with ServiceSETA, the building of the Artisan Skills Academy is in process.  W&R SETA and Shoprite Checkers donated a fully furnished Retail practicum room.

The Design and Line Manufacturing incubation project through the renovation of an existing Maintenance Workshop in St Georges Street is made possible by the SEDA partnership sponsorship. This partnership will make it possible for a total of 20 SMM’es per intake in Graphic Design, Clothing Production, Jewellery Manufacturing and Welding to use the incubator as a start up point for their small businesses.

Motheo TVET College is inviting the industry and future partners to strive and geared towards easing unemployment and deliver Artisans of quality.  The contact person is the   Manager Partnerships and Linkages at  051-4069344 or email [email protected].
As the well known Helen Keller has said
“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much”