ANC focuses on ICT skills

By Christelle du Toit, ITWeb senior journalist

Johannesburg, 11 Oct 2007

Progress is being made in addressing the country`s skills shortage, but big business needs to do more.

This is one of the key messages that emerged from the ANC`s discussion documents for its upcoming national conference.

In its economic transformation discussion document, the ANC addresses the country`s ongoing skills shortage, saying: "In the long run, our most effective weapon in the campaign against poverty and unemployment is education."

It says that, while "significant progress" has been made in addressing the skills challenge, "we need a clear assessment of the progress we have made and the challenges that remain".

Big business is taken to task in the document, which states: "In some cases, the private sector`s response to skills development and black economic empowerment policies appears unenthusiastic at best, showing an unwillingness to accept that these policies are in the long-term interest of business itself.

"South African firms took too long to start ramping up their capacity, with the result that the country is now importing many inputs and materials required, thereby exporting jobs unnecessarily."

It notes that, in responding to these issues and more, the ANC has to ask itself if it has to become more effective in mobilising economic transformation. In return, the private sector "needs to ask itself whether it has not been somewhat lethargic and perhaps even pessimistic in its assessment of the trajectory of growth in our country and the rest of the sub-continent, thus falling short when major positive changes start to manifest".

The document states: "While in the short-term it may be necessary to import critical skills to ensure growth, we must ensure such programmes are always linked to skills transfer."

It goes on to call for closer cooperation between the departments of labour and education in ensuring the right skills are provided to the economy. "The key challenge is to address the mismatch between the supply of largely unskilled and semi-skilled labour that our history has bequeathed, and the demand for skilled labour that the economy is now generating."

The ANC`s policy documents are to be debated and ultimately adopted, either as is or in an altered form, at its national conference in December.