A total of 5 730 metal industry apprentices were currently undergoing training in South Africa, the highest figure in ten years and comfortably ahead of the target of 5 000 set in 2008 by the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of South Africa (Seifsa).

Outgoing Seifsa president Johan Fourie described the training intake as a "considerable achievement" in the context of the prevailing recession, which had had a disproportionately negative effect on its manufacturing-centric membership base.

"This encouraging trend is largely due to the influence of the Accelerated Artisan Training Project and the concerted effort of a number of our larger employers to tackle the artisan skills shortage head-on," Fourie, who is also an executive at steel group ArcelorMittal South Africa, told Seifsa members during his presidential address in Johannesburg on Friday.

The federation had been active in promoting artisan training and last year spent R7,3-million in expanding training facilities at its Fundi Training Centre, in Benoni, east of Johannesburg. "We have recently committed a further R3,2-million towards the expansion of the centre to accommodate an influx of trainees associated with the Eskom Kusile power station project," Fourie reported.

The apprentice successes apart, Seifsa members had been generally ravaged by the recession, which Fourie said was showing some signs of easing.

Employment in the metal and engineering industry slumped dramatically from a ten-year high of 399 000 jobs in February to 342 000 jobs in July, with more than 57 000 jobs being shed in a period of five months.

"The recession, when it reached our shores, was immediate and intense. Exports to our major trading partners, the US, Europe and Asia, declined dramatically and manufacturing in South Africa felt the impact," Fourie reflected.

RAND RUCTIONS

He said that Seifsa was hopeful that the worst of the job losses was over, but warned that "severe short-time working arrangements still appear to be the norm throughout most sectors of the industry".

While the national economy was expected to emerge from recession by the end of the year, Seifsa was of the view that the recovery could be weak, especially for its members.

"For our sector, the rebound in the manufacturing confidence index in the third quarter suggests that factories are scaling up investment plans. This is good news as manufacturing output accounts for around 14% of our economy," Fourie said.

But the strength of the South African currency could take the gloss off both the recovery and its strength. The South African unit had been one of the best performing in the world during 2009.

Seifsa was concerned that, should these gains continue, it could undermine the competitiveness of local exports, notwithstanding improved global demand.

"As we enter the recovery phase for the global economy, South Africa needs to be competitive for both exports and investment capital. As it currently stands, the currency is too overvalued to achieve this," Fourie cautioned.