Assuring the Acquisition of Expertise: Apprenticeship in the Modern Economy Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press

1. Assuring the Acquisition of Expertise: Apprenticeship in the Modern Economy Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press No. 19 XisanhuanBeilu, Beijing, China 26 – 27 May 2011 INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

2. Targeting Apprentices in and for Development: The South African dilemma!!! Salim Akoojee (PhD) merSETA: Research and Development Adjunct Associate Professor (Wits University, Johannesburg)

3. INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

4. National Development challenges (and responses) • The PIE Challenge • Poverty, • Inequality and • (Un) Employment • Demographic Context (Class/Health/Age/Race/Gender/Disability) • National Response • RDP (1994) -GEAR (1996) - ASGISA (2005), HRDSA (2008+), New Growth Path (2010, Oct) INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

5. Key indicators: 2008-9 INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

6. Demographic Profile of Labour Force Demographic Profile (Manufacturing) statsSA 2010 INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

7. Skills Development: Ending POVERTY throughDECENT WORK • Skills need to respond to twin challenges of Colonialism and Apartheid and reality of Uneven Development • A meaningful long-term response to: Poverty, Unemployment, Growth, Crime, Xenophobia, power crisies, infrastructural considerations for FIFA Word Cup • New development and growth path for South Africa Our policy levers to achieve faster growth, higher employment and reduced levels of poverty include skills development which must assist not only support the formal private sector growth but also labour-intensive industries, infrastructure investment, public service delivery and rural development. Quality education and training is needed at all levels. The role of skills development is central.... (NSDS III, p.6) • Redress (and access) prerogatives • Unemployment • Low paid work INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

8. This story!! • Unraveling the nature of apprenticeship production (targeting) in South Africa • What is current status? • What are the plans for development? • Why is this the case? • What possibilities for success? Mechanisms in place • Why mistaken and misguided???? • The bigger picture • Understanding Targeting as a response to national skills development needs • Why there is need to re-interrogate responses? • Exploring the international evidence of what makes this work • The South African way forward • Lessons for South Africa • Discussion: Why I don’t have it right? INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

9. ‘Targeting’ skills for development: The national response • Jipsa Target (March 2006) – 50 000 p/a (2007-2010)…Achievement…who knows? • 30 000 engineers and 50 000 additional artisans by 2015 (National Growth Path, Dept. of Economic Development) • 10 000 artisans per annum to be produced (National Skills Development Strategy, NSDS III) INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

10. Highest Level Targeting • Minister of Higher Education and Training’s Agreement with President • Output 1: Establish a credible institutional mechanism for skills planning, • Output 2: Increase access to programmes leading to intermediate and high level learning, • Output 3: Increase access to occupationally-directed programmes in needed areas and thereby expand the availability of intermediate level skills (with a special focus on artisan skills), • Output 4: Increase access to high level occupationally-directed programmes in needed areas, • Output 5: Research, Development and Innovation in human capital for a growing knowledge economy • Outputs and measures • Output 3: Increase access to occupationally-directed programmes in needed areas and thereby expand the availability of intermediate level skills (with a special focus on artisan skills) • Increase the number of learnerships to at least 20 000 per annum by 2014 • Produce at lease 10 000 artisans per annum by 2014 • Put in place measures to improve the trade test pass rate from its 2009 level of 46% to 60% by 2014 • Increase the placement rate of learners from learnership and apprenticeship programmes, as well as learners from NCV programmes, who require workplace experience before being able to take trade tests or other summative assessments. At least 70% of learners should have placement every year. • By 2011, establish a system to distinguish between learnerships up to and including level 5, and level 6 and above • Increase the proportion of unemployed people, as compared to employed people, entering learnerships from the current level of 60% to 70% INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

11. Clearly, while the use of targeting is a necessary means for achievement of specified objectives, it is not a sufficient condition for its success. INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

12. The ‘Inscrutable’ Rationale for Targeting INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

13. Targeting skills for development • Is targeting the answer? • Agreement about what targets need to be reached? • Feasibility? See MDGs • Methodological considerations • Conceptual considerations • Operational considerations • Can these targets not be reached? Highest level agreement? • Even if these targets are reached” so what? Has improvement happened systemically • Have we got the problem right? • What mechanisms are envisaged to make it work? INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

14. …and what of other ChallengesAccess/Redress/equity • Education specific • General Education Quality • International Benchmarks (PISA ?PIRLS/TIMMS/ SACMEQ II? • Matriculation (quality?) • Uneven quality (wide differential) • Higher Education • Funding • Throughput • Admission • Staffing • TVET Challenges • Linkages with labour market • Enrolment (inverted triangle – HE vs FET • Provision quality (public TVET) • Staffing • Students • Curriculum • Funding • Infrastructure • Parity of esteem INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

15. Is there a numbers problem? Artisan shortages INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

16. What makes Apprenticeship systems work? • Nature of the international evidence • Partnership (Government/Business/Labour) • State support • Incentives and compulsions • Importance of effective regulatory market • Specify rights and responsibilities of stakeholders • Quality assurance responsibility • Business • Demand-driven system • Ensure that contractual considerations don’t stifle effectiveness (training market) • multi-employer co-ordination of industrial relations and training that ensures training content and delivery by industry standards and the importance of .. • ….vibrant union structure that balances the firm-specific training bias INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

17. Proposed Targets and achievements INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

18. Mechanisms for resolution Structural • DHET and skills development responsibility • NAMB • QCTO (see later slide) • SETAs Specific Initiatives • Enhanced Pathways • Apprenticeship Route • Learnership Route • Internship or Skills Programme Route • Recognition of Prior Learning Route • New Architecture • Planning and Monitoring • Insertion in national development plan INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

19. Sector Education and Training Authorities and merSETA SETAs merSETA to facilitate sustainable development of skills, transformation and accelerate growth in the manufacturing and related services sectors Sub (economic) sectors Metal and engineering, Auto manufacturing, Motor retail and component manufacturing, Tyre manufacturing and Plastics industries Approximately 44000 companies, with a workforce of approximately 600 000 • Skills Development Act (1998 & 2008) • Shift in labour legislative regime to include active labour market policies • Skills Development • Employment Services • Skills Development Levies Act (1999) • Tri-partite response to skills development (Govt/ Business/Unions) • NEDLACs ‘Social dialogue’ NEDLAC (http://www.nedlac.org.za/) • Mandates to respond to skills development needs of particular sectors (NSDSs) 2000-2005-2010-2015) • Establishment of Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs) • 23 SETA’s exist in key economic sectors • Funded by 1% levy for companies payroll over R 500 000 (US$ 65 000) INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

20. Proposed QCTO INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

21. (in)conclusion • The rationale for targeting has not been established • The way in which targets are achieved (0r not) has not been identified • There are important reasons for targets to be achieved? Ministerial promises • There is no clarity about the way in which quality in implementation is to be realised (despite new pathways and enhanced systemic considerations …) • Even the new QCTO and NAMB promising but still have to be established • Is there a ‘short-term solution’ or is ‘short-terminism’ the problem. • No easy road to freedom…. INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

22. Transformation and change I cannot say whether things will get better if we change; what I can say is we must change if they are to get better... Georg C. Lichtenberg (German scientist) 1742-1799 INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011

23. Might require an attitude(-nal) review…..

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25. Pre-2008 system INAP - Beijiing - 27-29th May 2011