Photo by: Duane Daws
Whether government’s ambitious R813-billion infrastructure programme spend over the next three years can be realised without tackling the shortage of key skills in the region, remains to be seen, says Nedbank Property Finance human resources head Portia Muyunda.
One of the biggest challenges the country’s property industry faced was that of skills development, with Department of Higher Education and Training figures pointing to a shortage of 46 000 artisans.
This shortfall was a major concern, as indicated in PwC’s Construction 2014 report, which stated that more than two-thirds of CEOs in the construction sector were most anxious about access to key skills.
“The sustainability of the country’s property industry, which includes the construction and the financing thereof, rests more on its people than it does on property. The reality is that without access to a healthy pool of qualified and skilled talent, the local property industry faces a significant structural risk,” Muyunda said in a statement on Tuesday.
“As such, the importance of developing those who are already working in our industry, as well as training the next generation of skilled property industry employees, cannot be overemphasised. The onus is, therefore, on all stakeholders within the industry to recognise and accept the responsibility they have to add to the talent pool,” she added.
BRIDGING THE GAP
Recognising this need to equip new entrants into the industry to enhance their skills and expertise in the broader property industry, Nedbank Property Finance partnered with the University of the Witwatersrand short course management body Wits Enterprise to form the Nedbank Property Finance Academy, which was endorsed by the South African Property Owners Association.
Over the past seven years, the academy produced 269 graduates from Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape who had completed a ten-month, eight-module programme. This included lectures and assignments on property economics and law, financial calculations and statements, finance and investment, structural defects and town planning.
Other highlights included tours to various properties funded by Nedbank Property Finance. The academy had also been successful in prioritising the development of previously disadvantaged employees.
According to the South African Institute of Black Property Practitioners, transformation within the property sector had made slow progress.
“Even after almost 21 years of democracy, it is evident that more needs to be done as the issue of skills scarcity cannot be separated from the need for effective transformation. The risk of increasing competition for available talent can, and should be, addressed via the transformation imperative,” Muyunda noted.
The local property industry had significant potential, particularly with government’s stated support through nearly R1-trillion in funding; but it was vital that the threat of skills shortage and lack of skills development were prioritised, to ensure that the industry could truly benefit from existing opportunities.