Address by Oupa Mopaki, CEO of Isett Seta, at the

Telkom learnership launch

Sheraton- 6 April 2004

Theme: “ Partners in skill development”

The honourable Minister, Membathisi Mdladlana, the CEO of Telkom, Mr. Sizwe Nxasana, Distinguished Guests, Friends and Colleagues, Programme Director, Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is indeed a great honour for me to address this momentous occasion this morning. Momentous in that it is a gathering of like-minded catalysts, that shares a common vision and destiny towards the development of skills in our sector.

This morning we are celebrating the first step of a giant company, Telkom, in partnership with one of the performing Setas, ISETT SETA to implement highly sought after learnership programmes in ICT.

Just a few days ago, South Africa’s 25-sector education and training authorities, or Setas, as they are usually known, entered their fifth year of existence. As such, this is a make-or-break year in which all eyes will be scrutinising their success or otherwise in the skills development arena.

As the “commander” have spoken(Minister Mdladlana). The ISETT SETA is indeed on track to beat learnerships target, will continue to develop programmes to close the gap of skills shortage in the sector. For as long as the budget lasts, sufficient finance will be earmarked to support companies participating in the industry learnerships

Our push to promote learnerships is not merely a matter of chasing numbers and meeting targets. On their own, numbers and targets are meaningless. What counts is the impact these learnerships will have in alleviating critical skills shortages, not just in our sector, but also among all sectors of the economy using ICT infrastructure and skills.

There is no doubt in my mind that learnerships are the best, most effective approach to build critical ICT skills.

For one, they are properly structured, ensuring that learners undertake a formal training programme that is rigorously monitored and from which they emerge with a nationally recognised qualification. Secondly, learnerships are specifically designed to meet the demands of employers, who have directly participated in identifying the learnerships needed to close skills gaps. Thirdly, and most importantly, they produce work-ready people who have had practical exposure to the demands of the workplace through experiential training, as well as the theoretical know-how to do the job. As every job-seeker knows, experience is irreplaceable. You can have all the qualifications and theoretical knowledge in the world, but without practical experience, your prospects of finding employment are poor.

Because of their compelling combination of workplace training and classroom knowledge, our learner’s career prospects are bright on completing the programme. Having acquired the necessary skills, they are able to take a proactive stance towards their careers, seeking formal employment or establishing their own businesses rather than waiting for someone to employ them.

I am convinced, though, that most ISETT SETA learners will be quickly and eagerly absorbed by employers, since the skills being acquired are in high demand and in short supply, in the economy across the board.

While learnerships are designed for the lower end of the skills scale, mostly at entry levels, ISETT SETA has not overlooked the top end of the skills spectrum. We recognise that there are many graduates and post-graduates in South Africa having difficulty finding employment after graduation. And the reason most often cited by potential employers is that these graduates lack sufficient work experience.

For this reason, ISETT SETA is embarking on a High Level ICT internship programme to assist unemployed graduates to obtain workplace experience. With funding assistance from the National Skills Authority, we will be encouraging partnerships between these graduates and workplace providers, for eight-month-long internship programmes. During this period, the interns will acquire structured workplace experience, possibly supplemented by a limited amount of formal course-type training.

Closure

I am pleased to announce that Telkom has become one of the first large levy-payers in our sector to volunteer for such a partnership. Apart from launching its call centre and project management learnerships, which will benefit more than 364 learners, Telkom is also commencing its Graduate Internship Programme, aimed at exposing science and engineering graduates to the workplace by being placed in various Telkom divisions.

Based on the lead being taken by Telkom, I am confident that other large levy-payers in the ISETT SETA sector will soon follow suit.

Would also like to thank Ms. Charlotte Mokoena and her team for this great achievement, It is indeed a great pleasure of working together to improve the lives of those who are less fortunate in our country.

To the learners, I wish you all the best in your new-found career. There is a going that goes “The harder you work the luckier you become.”

Thank you

ends

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