Minister sets his sights on revamped higher education sector

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The reforms, announced by the Minister of Higher Education and Training, Buti Manamela, are a response to a fragmented and uneven PSET sector that has locked young people out of opportunities, provided skills that do not meet the economy’s needs, has underperforming institutions and funding models that remain unstable.

“We will reimagine and reengineer our post-school education and training system for a changing world. South Africa deserves a system that delivers skills, knowledge, and opportunity for all,” the Minister said.

Manamela outlined his short-term and long-term vision for the sector during a media briefing in Pretoria on Tuesday.

“In the next three months, we will stabilise the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and set in motion a sustainable student funding model. We will establish the post-school education and training (PSET) Reengineering Task Team, bringing together expertise from across sectors to guide the redesign of our system.

“We will strengthen the Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) oversight, finalise their realignment, and ensure every SETA delivers measurable value. We will begin engagements with the National Treasury on long-term funding solutions,” the Minister said.

Additionally, the Department of Higher Education and Training will launch three major strategic projects focusing on Skills to Work Transitions, targeting young people not in employment, education or training; Career Choices (currently known as Khetha), targeting school learners from an early age to guide them into learning and work pathways; and Adult Literacy, targeting the four million South Africans who are functionally illiterate.

Over the next 12 months, the department will pilot autonomous colleges and new Community Education and Training (CET) models to improve agility and responsiveness.

“We will review the CET landscape to ensure it plays a meaningful role in community development. We will launch technical and vocational education and training (TVET) curriculum pilots aligned with emerging industries.

“We will establish a national PSET database to improve planning and accountability. We will begin the roll-out of the NASCA [National Senior Certificate for Adults] as an alternative pathway for school leavers,” he said.

Moreover, the department will complete legislative reviews, addressing gaps and contradictions that undermine system coherence.

“To secure the future of our system, we will set up a multi-sectoral task team to review and consolidate three decades of policy and legislative reforms. This task team will learn from the crises that forced transformation, the Fees Must Fall movement, to institutional mergers, and will chart a deliberate, planned transformation for the next generation.

“The aim is simple – to build a single, coherent, and high-performing post-school education and training system that is fit for purpose in a changing world,” the Minister said.

The department plans to accelerate infrastructure upgrades and ensure campus safety across the system.

“Over the next four years, we will fully implement a sustainable student funding model. We will consolidate SETA and CET reform. We will drive digital learning across the system, ensuring every learner can benefit from technology-enabled education.

“We will institutionalise career guidance and lifelong learning pathways from school to work to retirement. We will deepen research and innovation capacity, strengthen our partnerships with industry, and expand our presence on the continent and globally.

“And we will ensure that our system, as a whole, delivers a clear and measurable return on the public investment it receives,” the Minister said.

The work of the department will be guided by six core objectives as follows:

• To integrate the system into a single, coordinated whole.
• Expand equitable access to all who can benefit.
• Ensure responsiveness to the needs of the economy, the labour market, and society.
• Raise the quality of provision and learning outcomes.
• Improve efficiency, governance, and accountability.
• Guarantee sustainability – in funding, in institutional stability, and in the confidence of citizens.

These objectives are anchored in five strategic pillars.

• Economic renewal and jobs - ensuring that graduates are employable and the institutions are aligned to growth sectors.
• A green just transition - making the skills system a driver of climate resilience and low-carbon innovation.
• Building public sector capacity, so that the state is equipped to serve the people effectively.
• Research and innovation - to strengthen the country’s intellectual sovereignty and generate solutions from Africa, for Africa, and the world.
• Social inclusion - to make sure no one is left behind – whether they live in a rural village, a township, an informal settlement, or a city.