KwaZulu-Natal Business 2016-17 edition

OVERVIEW
Coastal KZN TVET College
gives students practical experience
through facilities such as the
Nongalo Industrial Park, where
school furniture is repaired and
burglar bars and computer tables
are made. The college has several
sites on the South Coast and caters
for 15 400 students.
Majuba TVET College has a
focus on engineering as the coal
and steel industries are prominent
in Newcastle. Some of their
engineering students have done
apprenticeships on Sibanye gold
mines in Gauteng. The Mnambithi
TVFET College is located in the
Battlefields Route tourism area
and offers National Diploma
courses in tourism, among other
qualifications.
The Premier's office in 2015
collaborated with the Municipal
Infrastructure Support Agency
and the KZN Academy to recruit
and place 86 young learners
from TVET colleges in eight municipalities
to enable them to gain
workplace experience in technical
skills.
A bigger programme, the R74-
million Public Sector Internship
Programme, saw 1 237 graduates
gain experience while the Work
Integrated Learning Programme
(of the national Department of
Higher Education) placed 255
TVET students in provincial departments
and private companies.
In addition, 680 apprentices
(including 200 in 35 private companies)
are learning on-site skills
as fitter machinists, tool-jig-anddie-makers,
welders, bricklayers,
spray painters, plumbers and
carpenters, in addition to many
other jobs.
A R22-million project of the provincial government will in 2016 offer
short technical courses to 100 apprentices and 850 unemployed young
people. The funding will come from MERSETA (the manufacturing,
engineering and related skills education training authority).
Schools
Although KwaZulu-Natal is home to some of South Africa’s oldest and
most expensive private schools, the backlog of its infrastructure at the
poorer public schools is still formidable. The provincial government is
spending heavily on providing classrooms, toilets and other facilities
in rural areas.
There are 1.9-million children who benefit from the national school
feeding programme in KwaZulu-Natal. A total of 4 747 schools are classified
as no-fee schools, accounting for about 80% of the province’s
public schools.
There are approximately 26 000 public schools in South Africa. There
were 44% more private schools in South Africa in 2010 than there were in
2001 (South African Institute of Race Relations). Some of the new private
schools are small and modest, but the sector is also attracting investors.
JSE-listed ADvTECH has two Crawford Colleges in the province.
Curro Holdings is also listed on the JSE and is rapidly growing its
portfolio of schools. This is partly due to acquisitions such as that of
Curro Embury College in Morningside. There are other Curro schools
at Hillcrest and Mount Richmore (North Coast).
A funding agreement with Old Mutual Investment Group SA
(OMIGSA) and the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) will see Curro
roll out 11 low-fee independent schools in the years to 2019. These will
be called Meridian Independent Schools.
ONLINE RESOURCES
Council of Higher Education: www.che.ac.za
Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa:
www.isasa.org
KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education:
www.kzneducation.gov.za
National Department of Basic Education: www.education.gov.za
National Department of Higher Education and Training:
www.dhet.gov.za
National Research Foundation: www.nrf.ac.za
105 KWAZULU-NATAL BUSINESS 2016/17