The Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) on Friday hosted the official send-off of delegates for the biennial WorldSkills International Competition, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, from August 11 to 16.

The competition hosted tens of thousands of skilled young people from around the world, accompanied by their coaches and mentors, to demonstrate their talents in public and test themselves against the most demanding international standards.

An estimated 1 200 global competitors would be participating, with 200 000 real-time and two-million virtual guests expected.

Speaking at the send-off, Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande noted that the WorldSkills South Africa initiative was one of government’s flagship programmes.

“This programme is suitably located within our department as it directly links to our key objective as stated in the White Paper for Post-School Education and Training. The main emphasis is to build and develop an expanded, effective and integrated post-school system so as to uplift the image of vocational skills and the quality of vocationally skilled individuals,” he said.

The South African delegation represented 19 skills areas, including auto body repair, automobile technology, beauty therapy, car painting, computer numerical control turning, cooking, electrical installations, graphic design, hairdressing, information technology network systems administration, software solutions for business, mechatronics, mobile robotics, plastering and dry walling, plumbing and heating, refrigeration and air conditioning, restaurant service, Web design and welding.

DHET Deputy Minister Mduduzi Manana noted that the local ecomony was in “desperate need of artisans. In fact, our post-school education and training system must produce 30 000 [graduates] a year by 2030 if we are to keep up with the rest of the world’s economies”, he stated.

“Even more imporantly to this, our youth need to increase their chances of becoming employed. Through obtaining high-quality and relevant qualifications and by choosing to become an artisan, young people can measurably increase their chances of securing gainful employment, while also contributing positively to one of the key economic challenges that face the country,” he said.

Meanwhile, Nzimande said an interim steering committee, comprising representatives from various DHET branches, the Department of Basic Education, sector education and training authorities, provincial artisan development committees and technical vocational education and training colleges, attended a capacity building event earlier this week to inform the next round of provincial skills competitions, and to plan the second WorldSkills South African National Skills Competition.

“This will enable us to find more and more highly motivated and talented young people that will become the skills ambassadors of the future,” he added.

The WorldSkills Competitions South Africa was launched in 2014, after Manana visited the Americas regional competition in Brazil, in 2012, and the WorldSkills global competitions in Germany, in 2013.

“Within the South African context, participation in the WorldSkills competition holds huge potential to influence the development and employability of the South African youth.

“In addition to this, it acts as an effective vehicle to increase awareness of apprenticeships and artisanal skills, raising, of course, the standard of vocational education and training and artisanal skills,” Manana said.

Nzimande highlighted that the initiative had the potential to remove the divide between the demand and supply side of skills development. “Many employers from various economic sectors are lining up to support WorldSkills South Africa, and welcome government’s drive to adopt a global model that supports economic growth and the [training] of youth,” he added.