Government on track to meet artisan target – Minister

The government remains confident of meeting its target of producing 30,000 artisans per year in line with the National Development Plan, despite the challenges faced by some training institutions, writes Bekezela Phakathi for BD Live.

In the past four years, Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande said, an average of 15,000 apprentices per year have qualified as artisans. The government has highlighted the dearth of skilled artisans, workers and professionals as a key constraint to growing the economy and reducing South Africa’s unemployment rate.

Nzimande said that colleges had the capacity to provide theoretical training for the required number of artisans. However, he said, artisan training did not rely on colleges alone, but more importantly, on the workplace-learning component.
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