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MALAWI
1. CHALLENGES FACING MALAWI
Political
The political landscape has changed tremendously resulting in the ruling party possessing a number of members of parliament who can ably push bills to be enacted into law. The impeachment motion was dropped and the food shortage resulted in a governmental change in focus. This resulted in an increase in budget allocation and huge expenditure on maize purchase in order to cushion the drought which had adversely affected the country due to poor rains and harvest.
There is still some political bickering but the anti-corruption drive is producing some encouraging results.
A bumper harvest is expected this year which may enable the government to shift it's focus from the hunger crisis to issues of national development which may lead to job creation.
Good corporate governance is the main driver of value in an economy and is being seriously advanced by Malawi. Government adherence to good corporate governance would speed up economic development of the country. All companies are encouraged to practice good corporate governance in order to attract investment which results in job creation, so as to increase the social status of employees and society as a whole.
Economic
The economic base of Malawi is narrow and depends mainly on its agricultural exports to earn foreign exchange. Manufacturing is not very advanced so the country relies heavily on the import of materials from other countries such as South Africa; Malawi is labeled as a net importer. The present Government is trying to transform the economy to a predominantly exporting country.
Attempts are being made to start mining as an alternative foreign exchange earner, although on a smaller scale.
The Government relies heavily on donor support for its budget. The kwacha has slumped from K123 to K140 against the United States dollar while the bank rate is at 25%. The volatility of the kwacha and high interest rates are likely to affect operations in the country. Despite the adverse effects, it s expected that the economy will grow by 6%.
Fuel price hikes in the international market have had a direct impact on the local market with subsequent results pushing up the prices of commodities. In the first quarter of 2006 the price index rose from K190.15 to K203.39 in April and a further increase is expected. This has victimised employees as their purchasing power has decreased with a subsequent increase in the prices of essential commodities without a corresponding increase in wages.
The inflation rate is around 15% but it is expected to decrease with the availability of food after harvest. It is expected that interest rates will be lowered leading to increased borrowing by companies which may in turn expand their operations and employ more people.
HIV/AIDS Pandemic
The HIV/Aids crisis is still a major threat world wide and Malawi - is no exception - though the situation is now under manageable levels with the advent of ARVs and health education.
Most employers are adopting the ILO-advanced workplace policy on HIV/AIDS with the aim of mitigating the impact of the pandemic on the workforce.
The creation of the National Aids Commission (NAC) and the formation of the Malawi Business Coalition Against HIV/AIDS (MBCA) - which has a membership of both private and public sector employers - is a significant relief to employers as the disease has been taking up a great deal of management time; especially in relation to affected staff. This development has assisted greatly in bringing about awareness among workers and in trying to promote sound policies of non-discrimination and humane treatment. MBCA has now increased its membership and has entered into alliance with member organisations who have medical aid membership so that their employees may procure ARVs from outlets at a reduced fee.
Efforts are being made to continue to fight against the scourge of HIV/AIDS by among other things encouraging abstinence and the creation of public awareness through public health education.
Privatisation
The Government is still pursuing a policy of privatisation having stopped the process for a while for a review. Meanwhile, Malawi Telecommunications Limited, the sole ground line phone company, has been privatised and the Electricity Supply Commission of Malawi and the water boards are being considered for privatisation. Some groups of people are against the sale on the grounds that it leaves many employees jobless, while the benefits are being enjoyed by foreigners with the financial muscle to purchase the companies rather than by locals.
2. CHALLENGES FACING HR PRACTITIONERS IN MALAWI
The issue of Pensions versus Severance Allowance is still proving very difficult and efforts are being made to correct the situation. The position is that Severance Allowances are required by law - it is compulsory for an employer to compensate an employee once his or her services are terminated - whilst this is not the case for pensions. This created a lot of misunderstandings for the Government, employers and other stakeholders.
Most employers are operating pension funds and the payment of a severance allowance is viewed as a double payment to employees who are on pension since the organisations are already contributing towards their funds.
A draft bill was drawn up and sent to Parliament but due to insufficient time, it was not deliberated and hence the status quo remains. This means that at present some companies have stopped remitting pension funds to insurance companies pending the revised position.
As reported in the previous situational country report, with the change to multipartism coupled with various amendments and the repeal of a number of pieces of legislation, labour administration has posed a significant challenge. The introduction of the Industrial Relations Court has eased a lot of labour problems as so many cases are now being transferred to the court for settlement.
Malawi is currently working on developing the Qualification Framework for Human Resource. The Institute of People Management of Malawi initiated the process in order to assess its members so that they are properly graded.
Malawi is also facing the global struggle for gender equality, in terms of the equal treatment of men and women who possess the same qualifications or do a similar job. It still appears that women are earning less than men even though they are equally qualified.
CONCLUSION
The advent of globalisation has made it a necessity for human resource management in Malawi to be in line with international standards. There is therefore a need for well trained HR managers with new skills, knowledge and attitudes.
The Institute of People Management of Malawi is tirelessly working towards professionalising HR practice by, among other things, advocating the certification of members and encouraging them to enrol for courses which may be relevant for advancement in their chosen field. The institute has also initiated a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme as one way of ensuring that practising members are kept up to date with current thinking in the HR profession.
Members who join the Institute are encouraged to subscribe to 'People Dynamics' and to look at 'WorldLink' in order for them to acquire knowledge and skills required in their field of specialization.
The Institute of People Management of Malawi is also in the process of coming up with a code of ethics which will regulate the conduct of its members.
All in all, the new policies being introduced by the Government may necessitate job creation which will in turn reduce unemployment levels.
UGANDA
Geographical background
Lying across the Equator, Uganda is a land locked country located in eastern Africa with a population of about 27 million. More than 75% of the population lives in the countryside.
Macroeconomic data
Uganda has experienced significant economic growth for over a decade and poverty has decreased substantially. Expansion in the agriculture, construction and communications sectors has fuelled growth, which averaged 7% for much of the 1990s, though nearer 5% in the last four years. Nevertheless Uganda remains one of the poorest countries in the world with 38 per cent of the population living below the poverty line and a per capita income of around $300 per annum.
Employment
According to the Labour Force Survey of 2003 carried out by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, Uganda has an active labour force of 9.2 million out of a total population of over 25.2 million as at November 2003. At 3.2%, the unemployment rate is highest among those with a secondary education and above. Furthermore, the survey found that 90% of the labour force is employed in the informal sector, 68% of whom are agricultural workers. Of the employed population, over 90% earn less than Ushs 200,000 a month (approx. US$115).
Challenges Faced by HR Managers
Employee Remuneration
Uganda’s minimum wage was last set in 1984 at Ushs 6000. Owing to the subsequent currency reform in 1987, this amount was reduced to Ushs 60. The minimum wage has since lost much of its purchasing power, with workers officially entitled to less than one dollar a month. Failure to define the minimum wage has sent out the wrong signals to the business community. Some investors have sadly become known for paying workers a pittance. This no doubt has also made it more difficult for HR managers to push for higher wages for their employees. They have resorted to periodically carry out remuneration surveys to justify to shareholders any salary increment proposals.
Privatisation and Commercialisation
One of the key policies is government divesture from the commercial enterprises in a bid to make them more competitive and efficient. As a result there has been significant downsizing of previously bloated industries which have been privatized, coupled with an urgent requirement by employers for a productive labour force. The HR Manager has therefore ceased to be merely an administrator but rather a change agent, strategizing and galvanising people into action, and raising the importance of HR with the top management.
The changing role of HR Managers
Although changing the role of HR Managers is a welcome venture it has come with challenges that have impacted on the association activities. Many HR professionals are having very demanding schedules and these sometimes interfere with their commitment to the association activities and promotion of professionalism through networking. To address this, a fully fledged secretariat is being developed to cater for the administrative gaps that exist in the Association.
Update on Activities of the Association of Uganda
The HRMAU is run by an Executive Committee, which comprises the following people:
• President - Florence Namatta Mawejje
• Secretary General - Francis Peter Ojede
• Treasurer – Esther Mirembe
It also has sub-committees, which deal with specific activities of the HRMAU.
These are:
• The WFPMA sub committee which deals with all matters associated with the World Federation;
• The AFRHMA sub-committee, which deals with all matters connected with the Africa association. This sub-committee also helps the Secretariat of the AFRHMA which is currently run by Uganda.
• The HRMAU sub-committee, which deals with all matters connected with the association in Uganda
The HRMAU currently has about 120 registered members in Uganda. Since its inception the HRMAU has been very active in organising quarterly breakfast meetings for its members. At these meetings, various people talk about topical issues in HR from their own experience and perspectives as HR practitioners. In the course of last year, the HRMAU had breakfast meetings
in August, October, December 2005 and one in March 2006.
Certification
The attainment of professional standards in HR is only currently being through. At this stage it is agreed that the key competency shift within the members of the HRMAU is the move away from personnel management to strategic HR management, which involves looking at people in an organisation as a strategic resource whose abilities must be used optimally towards the achievement of organisational goals. This involves being able to quantify HR efforts through appropriate HR metrics, designing appropriate reward and performance management strategies etc.
We plan to follow other associations' within the AFHRMA and other WFPMA bodies' in developing the certification or accreditation of our members.
SOUTH AFRICA
South Africa is a middle-income developing Country with an abundant supply of natural resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, energy, and transport sectors, a stock exchange which ranks among the 15th largest in the world, and a modern infrastructure supporting an efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers throughout the region. South Africa is the largest, most sophisticated economy in Africa with a GDP (gross domestic product) almost 4 times that of Egypt, the next largest economy in Africa. Although occupying only 4% of the land of the African continent, South Africa has more than half the cars, telephones, banks, and industrial facilities on the continent.
Formerly dependent primarily on gold and the mining industries, the economy is now more broadly based, with manufacturing, the largest sector, contributing nearly one quarter of GDP. South Africa has a modern, well-diversified economy in which agriculture, mining, manufacturing, commerce, and a broad structure of service establishments contribute to the wealth of the nation.
The South African Government has taken a number of steps to make its markets more attractive to foreign investment. Included in these efforts are:
• The reduction of tariffs and subsidies to local firms
•The elimination of both the discriminatory non-resident shareholders tax, and certain limits on hard currency repatriation
• Cutting the secondary tax on corporate dividends in half
• Foreign investors are permitted 100 percent ownership and the government treats it the same as domestic enterprise for various investment incentives such as export incentive programs and tariffs, tax allowances and other trade opportunities.
For foreign investors, South Africa offers: a substantial market with significant growth potential, a market-oriented tradition, access to other markets in Africa, excellent communication and transportation links, liberal repatriation of profits and earnings, lower labor costs than in Western industrialized countries, and the availability of inexpensive electrical power and raw materials.
Business customs in South Africa are generally similar to those in the United States and Western Europe.
South Africa's economic policies
The South African government is committed to providing the facilities and opportunities to communities disadvantaged by the pre-1994 apartheid system, and to enable those communities to share equitably in the resources of the country and its economy.
The government's macro-economic Growth, Employment and Redistribution (Gear) strategy is, at the same time, based on promotion of the free market and financial and fiscal discipline, aiming at economic growth, job creation and provision of basic services to all South Africans.
The government has underlined the importance it attaches to investment by introducing measures to enhance and support trade and industrial development.
The government is also promoting the development of small businesses. The National Small Business Act provides a mechanism to review the impact of proposed legislation on small businesses. It is also the enabling legislation for the Ntsika Enterprise Promotion Agency and National Small Business Council.
The National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) facilitates discussions to reach consensus between government, business and organised labour on issues affecting the economy.
Business organisations such as the Chamber of Mines, the SA Chamber of Business, the South African Foundation, and foreign chambers of commerce in South Africa regularly liase with government and comment on draft legislation.
Key reforms
The government is committed to sound public finances. Key reforms since 1994 include:
• The introduction of a three-year medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF).
• The establishment of co-operative inter-governmental institutions to manage budgetary and financial coordination between the national, provincial and local government.
• The creation of the South African Revenue Service as an autonomous and strengthened tax administrator.
• The adoption of a framework agreement to restructure state assets.
• The introduction of auction marketing arrangements as part of improved debt management.
• The enactment of the Public Finance Management Act of 1999
Strategy outline
Fiscal policies aimed at attracting foreign investment include:
• Reducing the budget deficit
• Easing the debt burden
• Improving tax collection
• Privatising state assets
• Eliminating government dis-saving
• Increasing government investment on infrastructure
• Reducing household and corporate taxes
• Reducing government expenditure as a percentage of GDP
Acheivements
South Africa has achieved a level of macroeconomic stability not seen in the country for 40 years.
The budget deficit came down from 9.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 1993 to fractionally over 1% in 2002/03. Total public sector debt fell from over 60% of GDP in 1994 to barely over 50% of GDP in 2002/03.
The net open forward position of the Reserve Bank fell from US$25-billion in 1994 to zero in 2003, while foreign reserves rose from one month's to two-and-a-half month's import cover in the same period.
These advances are creating opportunities for real increases in expenditure on social services, reducing costs and risks for investors and thus laying the foundation for increased investment and growth
10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ADOPTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
Addressing parliament on 8 May 2006 on the occasion of the 10th Anniversary of the adoption of the constitution of the Republic of South Africa, the President of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeki had this to say:
“As we celebrate the tenth anniversary of our Constitution, we cannot but recall and salute the contributions of all sectors of South African society and millions across the world to the great victory of the cause of freedom and democracy in our country.
The milestone we celebrate today should also serve to reinvigorate the transformation of the unity and solidarity we built during the course of our struggle for freedom, into a durable partnership for reconstruction and development, and the building of a non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa.
A century ago in April 1906, when it would have been impossible to foretell the day of freedom both for ourselves and the rest of our colonised continent, Pixley ka Isaka Seme nevertheless uttered inspiring words at Columbia University in New York, which are surely relevant to our celebrations today. And this is what he said:
“The brighter day is rising upon Africa. Yes, the regeneration of Africa belongs to this new and powerful period. The African people... possess a common fundamental sentiment which is everywhere manifest, crystallising itself into one common controlling idea. The regeneration of Africa means that a new and unique civilisation is soon to be added to the world."
Mr Mbeki also quoted what the former President of South Africa Mr Mandela said when the South African Constitution was adopted on the 8th of May 1996: “
“The new Constitution obliges us to strive to improve the quality of life of the people. In this sense, our national consensus recognises that there is nothing else that can justify the existence of government but to redress the centuries of unspeakable deprivations, by striving to eliminate poverty, illiteracy, homelessness and disease. It obliges us, too, to promote the development of independent civil society structures.
“While in the past, diversity was seen by the powers-that-be as a basis for division and domination; while in earlier negotiations, reference to such diversity was looked at with suspicion; today we affirm in no uncertain terms that we are mature enough to derive strength, trust, and unity from the tapestry of the language, religious and cultural attributes that make up our nation.”
“Let us now, drawing strength from the unity which we have forged, together grasp the opportunities and realise the vision enshrined in this Constitution. Let us give practical recognition to the injustices of the past, by building a future based on equality and social justice. Let us nurture our national unity by recognising, with respect and joy, the languages, cultures and religions of South Africa in all their diversity. Let tolerance for one another’s views create the peaceful conditions, which give space for the best in all of us to find expression and to flourish. Above all let us work together in striving to banish homelessness, illiteracy, hunger and disease.
“In all sectors of our society – workers and employers, government and civil society, people of all religions, teachers and students, in our cities, towns and rural areas, from north to south and east to west – let us join hands for peace and prosperity. In so doing, we will redeem the faith, which fired those whose blood drenched the soil of Sharpeville and elsewhere in our country and beyond. Today we humbly pay tribute to them in a special way. This is a monument to their heroism…(Thus) we give life to our nation’s prayer for freedom regained and (a) continent reborn…”
IPM subscribes to the values enshrined in the Constitution of our country and promotes programmes and interventions that would create a truly diversified and unified workforce.
LABOUR, SKILLS DEVELOPMENT, TRAINING AND EDUCATION
National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS)
The Government of the Republic of South Africa has developed a National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS) for the period of 1 April 2005 – 31 March 2010.
The NSDS is grounded on the following principles:
• Support economic growth for employment creation and poverty eradication.
• Promote production citizenship for all by aligning skills development with national strategies for growth and development.
• Accelerate Broad Based Economic Empowerment and Employment Equity. (85% Black, 54% women ad 4% people with disabilities, including youth in all categories). Learners with disabilities to be provided with reasonable accommodation such as assistive devices and access to learning and training material to enable them from access to and participate in skills development.
• Support, monitor and evaluate the delivery and quality assurance systems necessary for the implementation of the NSDS.
• Advance the culture of excellence in skills development and lifelong learning.
Department of Labour Strategic Plan
The Department of Labour of the Republic of South Africa has also developed a strategic plan, which has medium and long-term objectives running up to 2009.
This strategic plan has been developed within the context of Asgi-SA (Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa)
Key objectives of this strategic plan are:
1. Contribution to employment creation
2. Enhancing Skills development
3. Promote equity in the labour market
4. Protecting vulnerable workers
5. Strengthening multilateral and bilateral relations
6. Strengthening social protection
7. Promoting sound labour relations
8. Strengthening the capacity of labour market institutions
9. Monitoring the impact of legislation
10. Strengthening the institutional capacity of the Department
Asgi-SA: accelerated growth for all
The South African government's Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for SA (Asgi-SA), launched by President Thabo Mbeki in July 2005 and headed by new Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, aims to guide and improve on the country's remarkable economic recovery since the removal of the crippling policies of apartheid.
Its primary aim is to halve unemployment and poverty by 2014 - 10 years after the policy was first set out in 2004, and 20 years after South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994.
"We believe that we have built the basis for a national
programme of shared economic growth," Mlambo-Ngcuka said in presenting the Asgi-SA strategy in February.
"With this programme we can achieve our social objectives, and we can more than meet the Millennium Development Goals."
South Africa's economic growth has been impressive, rising from 3% in the first decade of freedom to around 5% in 2005. The boom has been based on high commodity prices, large capital inflows and strong domestic consumer demand, and rooted in anti-poverty measures, growing employment and rising asset prices.
But to have the desired impact on poverty and unemployment,
the government has determined that growth must be boosted to at least 6% - if not higher.
The unbalancing effects of growth
An important principle of Asgi-SA is that economic growth cannot be at any cost: it must be sustainable, and it must be shared among all South Africans. This comes from a recognition that recent growth, while welcome, has been unbalanced in two important ways.
First, the combined effect of all the drivers of South Africa's growth has been to strengthen the country's currency, making it difficult for exporters outside the commodity sector or those who compete with imports to stay competitive. That led to a trade deficit of nearly 4.5% of gross domestic product in 2005, well financed by capital inflows, but demonstrating South Africa difficulties in competing in more than raw commodities.
There is therefore a risk of "hollowing out" - losing capacity and jobs in more specialised sectors such as manufacturing - or, at least, an unbalanced economy. This risk is compounded by uncertainties in future commodity prices, capital flows and domestic consumption.
Another risk of rapid growth is a widening of the gap between rich and poor. While the social grants programme has made radical inroads into reducing poverty and redistributing income, a full third of South Africa's people are yet to benefit from the country's new prosperity.
There is more to this than social injustice. As long as a significant proportion of the population is excluded from the mainstream economy, South Africa's potential for future growth will be seriously obstructed. While the policy of broad-based black economic empowerment aims to address this economy-stifling imbalance, Asgi-SA seeks to take it further.
Six constraints, six responses
In developing Asgi-SA policy, the government consulted widely with experts in its departments, in business, industry and labour, and with international specialists. The conclusion was that interventions to accelerate growth in a shared manner must surgically target weaknesses unique to South Africa's economy and government.
This approach contrasts with that of the Washington Consensus approach, popular in the 1980s and 1990s, which set out a long list of "virtuous" actions held to solve any country’s economic problems.
Six binding constraints have been identified - a list short and focused enough to allow consistent and coherent responses:
• The overvaluation and volatility of South Africa's currency.
• An inadequate national infrastructure.
• A shortage of skilled labour.
• Barriers to entry, limits to competition and limited new investment opportunities
• A cumbersome regulatory environment.
• Deficiencies in state organisation, capacity and leadership.
To counter these six constraints, Asgi-SA initiatives fall into six broad categories:
• A massive investment in infrastructure.
• Targeting economic sectors with good growth potential.
• Developing the skills of South Africans, and harnessing the skills already there.
• Building up small businesses to bridge the gap between the formal and informal economies.
• Beefing up public administration.
• Creating a macroeconomic environment more conducive to economic growth.
Asgi-SA initiatives must still be adjusted and fine tuned, and consultations continue. The government plans to regularly review progress in its implementation, and the programme will also be reviewed by a team of economists and social scientists based at Harvard and other universities.
"Our second decade of freedom will be the decade in which we radically reduce inequality, and virtually eliminate poverty," Malmbo-Ngcuka said.
"We know now that we can do it, working together around an initiative which has the support of the nation."
Business throws its weight behind newly-launched JIPSA
Published 28/03/2006
Business has contributed about R2 million into the initial activities of the newly-launched Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition (JIPSA).
JIPSA is a multi-stakeholder working group, through which government, labour and business will join forces to fast-track the provision of priority skills required to support accelerated and shared economic growth for the country.
“Finally in business (as in life) money is a good indicator of serious intent,” noted the chief executive of AngloGold Ashanti, Bobby Godsell.
Godsell is also one of the business representatives in the
JIPSA task team.
Addressing the launch, Godsell said the shortage of skills was not a challenge faced by government alone, but affected other stakeholders, including business and labour.
“Let us as a nation join forces to produce the skills equivalent
for new airports, new harbours, and the broadband connectivity
of our telecommunications infrastructure,” he said.
Godsell called on companies to invest five percent of their payroll on skills development programmes, saying this would benefit their businesses in the long term.
He welcomed the introduction of JIPSA, saying that new ideas were imperative if the country was to undo the skills inequalities created by apartheid.
“Good ideas are useless unless matched with good deeds. These are deeds that I think will be present in every company that is serious about its long term future in South Africa,” he said.
Godsell also said that JIPSA needed to address skills shortage at three levels, including at the operational “broad based education” level of the workplace, artisan, management and leadership levels.
The JIPSA programme will be implemented in phases, with the first phase expected to be completed in 18 months. The complete life span of the project is set at three years.
The project’s joint task team, which is headed by Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, comprises 23 members, including government ministers, business and labour.
The joint task team will identify and advise on the shortage of scarce skills highly sought to help the country achieve an economic growth rate of six percent by 2010, to halve unemployment and poverty by 2014.
Source: BuaNews
The National Qualifications Framework Brochure
SAQA’s Mission
To ensure the development and implementation of a National Qualifications Framework which contributes to the full development of each learner and to the social and economic development of the nation at large.
What is the NQF, and how did it come into being?
The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) is a Framework on which standards and qualifications, agreed to by education and training stakeholders throughout the country, are registered. It came into being through the South African Qualifications Authority Act (No. 58 of 1995, Government Gazette No. 1521, 4October 1995), which provides for ‘the development and implementation of a National Qualifications Framework’. The structure of the NQF is outlined below:
|
NQF Level |
Band |
Qualification Type |
|
8
7
6
5
|
Higher
Education
and
Training
|
• Post-doctoral research degrees
• Doctorates
• Masters degrees
• Professional Qualifications
• Honours Qualifications
• National first degrees
• Higher diplomas
• National diplomas
• National certificates |
|
Further Education and Training Certificate (FETC)
|
|
4
3
2
|
Further
Education
and
Training
|
National certificates
|
|
General Education and Training Certificate (GETC) |
|
1
|
General
Education
and
Training
|
Grade 9, ABET Level 4 |
|
National certificates
|
What is the purpose of the NQF?
The NQF is a means for transforming education and training in South Africa.It has been designed to
• combine education and training into a single framework, and bring together separate education and training systems into a single, national system;
• make it easier for learners to enter the education and training system and to move and progress within it;
• improve the quality of education and training in South Africa;
• open up learning and work opportunities for those who were treated unfairly in the past because of their race or gender; and
• enable learners to develop to their full potential and thereby support the social and economic development of the country as a whole.
Who will implement the NQF?
The South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), which also came into being through the SAQA Act, is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the NQF. However, all South Africans who have a stake in education and training, have the responsibility for ensuring that the implementation of the NQF is successful – providers of education and training(e.g. schools, training centres), those who ensure the quality of that education and training, and of course learners themselves.
SAQA itself comprises 29 members. These 29 Authority members represent a variety of education and training constituencies. The SAQA Act identifies those sectors which can nominate representatives, and the Minister of Education in consultation with the Minister of Labour appoints the Authority members.
How will SAQA oversee the development and implementation of the NQF?
• In the NQF, all learning is organised into twelve fields. These in turn are organised into a number of sub-fields. SAQA has established twelve National Standards Bodies (NSBs), one for each organising field. Members of NSBs are drawn from six constituencies: state departments, organised business, organised labour, providers of education and training, critical interest groups and community/learner organisations. Up to six members from each of these constituencies serve on an NSB. The NSBs recommend standards and qualifications for registration on the NQF to SAQA.
• Each of these NSBs is responsible for recognising, or establishing, Standards Generating Bodies (SGBs). SGBs in turn develop standards and qualifications and recommend them to the NSBs for registration. SGBs are formed according to sub-fields, and members of SGBs are key role-players drawn from the sub-field in question. For example, the SGB for Teacher Educators is made up of school teachers, professional teacher bodies, university, college and technikon teaching staff, etc.
• SAQA accredits Education and Training Quality Assurance bodies (ETQAs) to ensure that the education and training which learners receive is of the highest quality. ETQAs in turn accredit providers to offer education and training in accordance with the standards and qualifications registered on the NQF.
• The SAQA Office which is responsible for implementing the decisions of the Authority, is headed by the Executive Officer. There is a Standards Setting division and a Quality ~Assurance division. Other divisions include a Resource Centre, Communications and Secretariat, and the division for the Evaluation of Educational Qualifications.
• Two sets of Regulations have been published under the SAQA Act to enable SAQA to oversee the implementation of the NQF: the National Standards Bodies Regulations (Government Gazette No. 18787, 28 March 1998) and the Education and Training Quality Assurance Bodies Regulations (Government Gazette No. 19231, 8 September 1998). In addition, SAQA has drafted criteria and guidelines for the generation and evaluation of standards and qualifications and for the accreditation of ETQAs and providers. All these documents have been published on the SAQA website, and are available from the SAQA offices.
Who benefits from the National Qualifications Framework?
• Learners: benefit from quality education provision of qualifications that enjoy national recognition and where appropriate, international comparability;
• Workers: benefit from clear learning paths in the qualification structure, to facilitate and support life-long learning and career advancement;
• Employers: benefit from a work force, competent in the skills and attitudes required in the competitive global economy of which South Africa is a part;
• Society: benefits from a proud, learning nation with the intellectual ability to adapt swiftly to change, especially technological change.
• Building our new nation demands the establishment of an integrated education and training system which acknowledges the achievements of all learners equally and supports a learning nation.
© South African Qualifications Authority 2006. Page generated at 12:29; Friday, May 26, 2006
BROAD-BASE BLACK ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT
The Government of the Republic of South Africa has enacted a broad-based black empowerment Act and also released codes of good practice on broad-based Black Economic Empowerment. The objective of the black economic empowerment process is to facilitate and promote entry into the main economic activity by Black people who were previously disenfranchised.
HUMAN RESOURCES
IPM is the premier human resource organisation in the country having been established 60 years ago. Its founding mission which it has fulfilled over the years is to contribute in a meaningful way to the effective development in the country in as cost effective a manner as possible. In keeping with this tradition IPM in collaboration with each branch networks and other strategy partners hosts high quality workshops at major centres throughout the country. Since the ushering of the democratic dispensation in the country in 1994 IPM has been expressing challenges in the sense that alternative HR organisations has sprouted in the country. IPM has responded to this challenges strategically by doing the following;
• Redefining its strategic niche within the South African contexts in an electing a new Board and interim CEO
• Entering into strategic alliances with organisations of similar interests and convictions.
In line with its renewed strategy IPM will be hosting its 50th Anniversary Convention from the 1- 3 October 2006 at Sun City.
The theme of the convention based on the Government Asgi-Sa and JIPSA initiatives is:
“GROWTH / PROFITABILITY / COMPETITIVENESS “
“DRIVING HIGH PERGORMANCE THROUGH PEOPLE”
Speakers of repute both nationally and internationally will speak at this convention, some of which are;
• Professor Pfeffer, Professor of Organisational Behaviour at the University of Stanford
• Professor William Joyce, who wrote the bestseller “What really works”, from the USA;
• Peter Howes, CEO of Infohrm in New Zealand
• Deputy Minister Cheryll Gilward.
Details of the current IPM Board that is driving this renewal strategy are as follows;
• Professor Shirley Zinn IPM President and HR Director for Nedbank;
• Renier Krige Vice President Strategy and HR Director for JD Group;
• Raj Seeparsad Vice President and HR Manager at TDM;
• Elijah Litheko Vice President : Stakeholder Relations and Interim CEO;
• Mpho Letlape Immediate Past President and Managing Director HR at Eskom;
• Geoff Verschoor : General Manager HR Randwater
• Angelo Peterson : Board member and Director at Capespan;
• Brenda Hendricks : Board member from the Department of Public Administration;
In planning an organising the 50th Anniversary Convention the Board is supported by the convention committee who’s names appear below:
• Dennis Ritter from Nedbank
• Italia Boninnelli from Nedcare
• Sanda Mohonathan from Accenture
• Victoria Makoe from Eskom
• Maggie Mojapelo from Avon
• Elijah Litheko from IPM.
IPM has established long term relationships with sister organisations both within the continent and abroad.
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