Dr Fazlyn Petersen, a senior lecturer in the Department of Information Systems at the University of the Western Cape.

South Africa’s IT sector is under pressure due to a lack of skills and diversity.

This is according to Dr Fazlyn Petersen, a senior lecturer in the Department of Information Systems at the University of the Western Cape.

Dr Petersen says the IS market needs more employment equity candidates, and more skills, including data analytics and cyber security skills.

This is particularly true in the highly specialised IT auditing field, where a combination of accounting, auditing and IT skills is required.

Dr Petersen will discuss these issues in her keynote address at the ITWeb GRC 2024 event on 20 February 2024 at the Forum in Bryanston, Johannesburg.

You don’t teach ‘IT audit’ as a skill, you typically teach audit. However, because most of the financial information is sitting on IT systems, IT audit comes first and becomes more important for us.”

Her presentation will cover the University’s partnership with Absa, which sponsors an IT audit academy at the IS department. The Absa iNkanyezi IT Audit Academy aims to equip third-year students who will enter the job market in 2025 with the right skills sets.

Dr Petersen will showcase successful training models and methodologies, share insights into overcoming barriers, and issue a call to action for industry support in expanding similar initiatives.

Click here for more information and to register.