EDWIN NAIDU | A skills revolution delayed: billions spent, little to show
Even President Ramaphosa may agree that the skills system needs a serious reboot. It should begin by removing those underperformers at Setas, writes Naidu
President Cyril Ramaphosa wants a skills revolution to drive economic growth, hoping it will allow him to close the curtain on his presidency with some tangible success.
For a leader who promised so much and delivered so little, Ramaphosa may ultimately be remembered as a president of grand gestures and thin outcomes — a “much ado about nothing” figure. Crudely put, the nickname “DoLittle”, borrowed from a children’s book about Dr John Doolittle and also from an Eddie Murphy movie, may well fit the crown that takes him into retirement.
Ironically, Ramaphosa was once ahead of his time. In July 2019, he became the first South African president to address guests via hologram at the Digital Economy Summit in Midrand. For a leader often accused of being stuck in the mud, it was a glimpse of future-ready leadership, albeit brief. Few would dispute that it has largely been downhill since. The long-promised reboot never arrived.
With skills development once again a recurring buzzword in finance minister Enoch Godongwana’s budget speech, it was fitting that one of the few genuine success stories in the sector recently borrowed from the president’s hologram playbook.
Yershen Pillay, the charismatic CEO of the Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority (Chieta), insists innovation is not a slogan but a way of operating. On February 13, Pillay delivered opening remarks to his stakeholders via hologram, modelling what future-ready leadership can look like in practice. Under his leadership, Chieta has built tech-savvy smart centres in rural areas across all nine provinces. More than 60,000 people have already passed through these centres. That is an impact you cannot deny — and precisely what all Setas should be striving for.
Long before innovation became fashionable, I recall Chieta’s communication and facilities manager, Glory Nyathi, dancing on a revolving photo booth at an annual report launch. Her joy was unmistakable. It was a small moment, but it spoke volumes about organisational culture and pride — qualities often absent in the public skills system.
Having interviewed many Seta heads over the years, it would be dishonest to suggest that all is well. Chieta is one of 21 authorities. Only a handful are doing a genuinely good job. Not all can boast clean audits year after year. Yet even where problems predated Pillay’s tenure, the glory days did not stop.
If any other Seta is achieving comparable impact — changing lives through innovation at scale — they are doing a poor job of telling that story. Or worse, they are spending public money unwisely in an attempt to do so.
By his own admission, Godongwana told parliament that levy income is projected to reach R88.2bn over the 2026 medium-term expenditure framework. Yet he conceded that many of the institutions entrusted with this money are failing to equip people with the skills required to drive economic growth.
Unfortunately, the broader narrative around skills development bears little resemblance to Chieta’s experience. Beyond a sprinkling of good, the picture is bleak.
By his own admission, Godongwana told parliament that levy income is projected to reach R88.2bn over the 2026 medium-term expenditure framework. Yet he conceded that many of the institutions entrusted with this money are failing to equip people with the skills required to drive economic growth.
In response, the National Treasury has commissioned the Government Technical Advisory Centre to conduct a comprehensive review of the national skills ecosystem in the year ahead. This may be the closest South Africa comes to determining whether it is getting value for the billions collected annually from corporate levies.
Godongwana says the government intends to reform the system to secure skills essential for a modern economy. “We must improve how we equip individuals ready to enter the labour market,” he said.
Yet in conversation with various businesses, frustration over the skills levies runs deep. As corruption has escalated, many companies have questioned whether paying levies still makes sense — or whether they are simply pouring money into a bottomless pit.
Minister of higher education and training Buti Manamela has welcomed the budget and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to skills development, expressing hope that it will help grow the economy. But hope alone is not policy.
If Manamela is serious, he must raise the bar on leadership. No Seta chairperson or CEO should be reappointed without a clean audit. Questionable appointments made today will return to haunt the system tomorrow, particularly when personal enrichment takes precedence over public purpose.
By the time the latest reviews are concluded, billions more may be lost — and the skills revolution will remain stuck in its long, troubled evolution, marked by weak leadership, patronage networks and corruption.
It is deeply ironic. Three decades ago, a strong civil society helped steer South Africa towards democracy. While that spirit may have waned, organisations such as Corruption Watch, Section27 and the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) continue to push for accountability — often at great cost. To describe this as “honest” would be a misnomer.
Manamela and his predecessors — particularly Blade Nzimande, under whose watch patronage politics flourished in the Setas — have not exactly rushed to engage Outa constructively. Perhaps Godongwana, as custodian of the public purse, should ask the Government Technical Advisory Centre to identify the real enemies of the skills revolution.
Outa may already have done much of its work. It has repeatedly been argued that Setas are deeply corrupt, poorly governed and failing in their mandate. According to the organisation, corruption has persisted for more than a decade, with little consequence. Repeated adverse auditor-general findings have been ignored, while executives implicated in mismanagement remain in their posts, drawing large salaries and bonuses.
Outa estimates that roughly R21bn in skills funding is wasted annually, delivering poor value to taxpayers. Two years ago, Nzimande — perhaps better described as the “minister of bluster” — threatened to sue the organisation for defamation. That threat has since faded into silence.
In January 2024, Outa released a report and leaked audio recordings alleging that Nzimande and then NSFAS board chair Ernest Khosa received kickbacks from service providers. Now relocated to the less glamorous — but critically important — science portfolio, Nzimande has gone quiet. But this is not a case of “Outa sight, Outa mind”, for Nzimande.
Even President Ramaphosa may agree that the skills system needs a serious reboot. It should begin by removing those underperformers at Setas.
That is how a real skills revolution starts.
Edwin Naidu heads Higher Education Media Services (HEMS), an education media start-up, publishing www.ednews.africa
This was published on TimesLive.