TASEZ Training Academy Archives

Skills training is able to change lives

By Mandla Mpangase Skills development is vital for the growth and transformation of South Africa’s economy – and is one of the core drivers of the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone. On 29 January 2025, representatives from the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone (TASEZ) and the TASEZ Training Academy attended a Services SETA monitoring session of one of their projects in Johannesburg, where they got the chance to meeting the 119 young people undergoing a learnership programme. The learners train under the auspices of Auvergne Designs, a factory that produces furniture for many of the country’s retailers. The learnership consists of 70% hands-on training, and 30% theoretical course work. At the end of 12 months, the participants graduate with the skills to enter the job market or even set up their own small business. “We are shaping the future of our youth,” says TASEZ Training Academy project manager, Ilse Immelman. The TASEZ Training Academy has three key components: skills development; entrepreneurial incubation; and high-performance programmes. “As a hub of innovation and growth in the automotive sector, our academy is dedicated to shaping the future of the automotive industry – and beyond – by nurturing talent, fostering entrepreneurship, and delivering high-performance education programmes.” Skills director for Auvergne, Phumla Stokwe, talks of the company’s vision of expanding their training offerings and developing a skills hub for the furniture industry. “We see the difference training makes in young people’s lives,” she says. Auvergne Designs co-owner Owen Drysdale is passionate about training the young cohort: “The youth are amazing. We recruit young people straight out of school and through the training are able to give them a solid foundation in furniture-making skills along with life skills like confidence and a level of self-esteem.” One of the young people on the learnership, 19-year-old Kutwano Motaung from Diepkloof Soweto, said he dreams of opening his own business in the future. By attending theoretical classes and then the practical work on the factory floor, Keagan Arends, from Noordgesig in Soweto, said the learnership was providing him with “workplace experience”. Auvergne Designs has been in operation for 25 years, but it was the Covid pandemic that breathed new life into the company: allowing it to change its approach from focusing on high-end products to retail furniture. This was possible thanks to the government funds provided during the pandemic and the partnership with the Services SETA, which offers a stipend for the young people undergoing the learnership programme. “It is through education, that we can create jobs,” Drysdale offers. The factory currently has 450 employees who work as frame cutters, seamsters, upholsterers, and quality controllers. Every item in the factory is hand-crafted using local materials. And the quality more than holds its own with international competition. Auvergne Designs is able to produce some 8 000 chairs every month. The TASEZ Training Academy appointed We Invest Africa as the project manager for the Auvergne Designs learnership programme. Director of We Invest Africa, Wisani Mathye, describes the project as an important one, giving the young people on the learnership the chance to change their lives. “On completing this year-long learnership, they will be able to find jobs and event start up their own businesses.” Natalie Ford from the Gauteng office of the Services SETA explained the importance of learnerships in opening doors to opportunities. The programmes sits on a number of pillars: employability; experience; knowledge acquisition; networking opportunities; and access to permanent jobs. South Africa has 21 SETAs (Sector Education and Training Authorities) covering key economic industries, including in agriculture, chemical, construction, finance and insurance, manufacturing, and wholesale and retail. Each SETA is responsible for managing and creating learnerships, internships, unit-based skills programmes, and apprenticeships within its industry.

WEF report highlights urgent need for new skills

News / By Jenny Tennant

By Mandla Mpangase Every year the who’s who of the global political, research and business worlds gather together in Switzerland to discuss issues and shape industrial, environmental and social programmes. The annual meeting of the minds, held under the auspices of the World Economic Forum (WEF), took place from 20 to 24 January 2025 in Davos-Klosters. WEF has published a research document called The Future of Jobs Report 2025, ahead of the gathering, highlighting the “technological change, geoeconomic fragmentation, economic uncertainty, demographic shifts and the green transition” that are expected to shape and transform the global labour market by 2030. The report reveals that some 22% of jobs globally will face disruption by 2030. The figures show that 170-million (14% of today’s total employment) new jobs are likely to be created, while 92-million jobs (8% of today’s total employment) will no longer exist within the next five years. The findings are of particular interest to the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone (TASEZ) as one of South Africa’s key investment instruments as a special economic zone (SEZ). Known as Africa’s first automotive city, TASEZ focuses on supporting global, regional and local investors in the automotive manufacturing industry. As such, the SEZ is ever aware of ongoing and rapid developments on the automotive manufacturing industry, including the development of new energy vehicles (NEVs) and the associated research and development required for that. TASEZ itself is also impacted by ever-evolving technological changes, the importance of embracing the green transition and the need to address economic transformation within South Africa. The WEF report brings together “the perspective of over 1 000 leading global employers – collectively representing more than 14 million workers across 22 industry clusters and 55 economies from around the world – to examine how these macrotrends impact jobs and skills, and the workforce transformation strategies employers plan to embark on in response, across the 2025 to 2030 timeframe”. A major area of focus is the broadening the digital access which is expected to transform the way business is conducted and includes the use of advanced technologies such as AI and information processing; robotics and automation; and energy generation, storage and distribution. “These trends are expected to have a divergent effect on jobs, driving both the fastest-growing and fastest-declining roles, and fuelling demand for technology-related skills,” the report notes. One of the top trends identified is related to economic conditions; the report notes that businesses expect to see an increase in the demand for creative thinking and resilience, flexibility, and agility skills. Both these elements are important to TASEZ, which has set up a training academy to answer the future demands of the industry as well as to make a significant contribution to changing the economic face of South Africa by making the industry a more inclusive, localised one. “We believe that SEZs can become engines of skills development, as well as training. By focusing on skills development within SEZs, the government, in partnership with international and local businesses, can empower community members and others, create diverse job opportunities, and drive sustainable development,” says TASEZ CEO Dr Bheka Zulu. The Future of Jobs Report 2025 also notes that climate-change mitigation is the third-most transformative trend overall – “climate change adaptation ranks sixth with 47% and 41% of employers, respectively” It is not surprising that the report identifies these trends as “driving the demand for roles such as renewable energy engineers, environmental engineers and electric and autonomous vehicle specialists”. All three roles are in the top five fastest-growing jobs. The skills gap is considered the largest barrier to business transformation, with the need to upskill and reskill the workforce requiring urgent attention. Nearly 60% of the global workforce will require reskilling or upskilling by 2030, according to the report. “If the world’s workforce was made up of 100 people, 59 would need training by 2030. Of these, employers foresee that 29 could be upskilled in their current roles and 19 could be upskilled and redeployed elsewhere within their organisation. However, 11 would be unlikely to receive the reskilling or upskilling needed, leaving their employment prospects increasingly at risk,” the report suggested. The TASEZ Training Academy was set up with a set of clearly defined aims: to understand and respond to industry trends and community needs; to provide easy access to a range of much-needed development programmes; to build strong partnerships within government, the Sector Education Training Authorities (SETAs), higher education institutions, research bodies, and industry; and to be the go-to academy for South Africa’s automotive sector. “We want to play a significant role in shaping the future of automotive excellence in South Africa,” Dr Zulu concludes. Image: Media briefing on the Future of jobs report (World Economic Forum 2025)

TASEZ Training Academy lauds new graduates

News / By Jenny Tennant

With the manufacturing sector in constant change as the Fourth Industrial Revolution takes hold, the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone, through its’ training academy, is making sure that workers are equipped for this future. The TASEZ Training Academy celebrated the graduation of 163 learners, presenting them with certificates of achievement on Thursday, 15 August 2024. With the graduates demonstrating exceptional dedication and skill in their training, the event was seen as an opportunity to recognise the learners’ hard work and commitment. The celebration showed the special economic zone’s commitment to providing much-needed skills development in a rapidly changing automotive industry. “Now is the time to lead a skills revolution in this country,” says chairperson, Lionel October TASEZ, adding that the TASEZ’s academy was set up to close the skills and technology gap. “As articulated in the South African Automotive Master Plan, the industry needs to be expanded, becoming more inclusive,” says CEO, Dr Bheka Zulu, adding that “a skilled, agile and adaptable workforce is essential to achieve this.” TASEZ, Africa’s first automotive city, is ideally placed to make an impact on inclusive jobs creation and upskilling. “TASEZ is delivering on its vision to be the benchmark for special economic zones in South Africa while contributing to the growth of the automotive sector,” says Dr Zulu. As the automotive industry is gearing up for production of new energy vehicles and for exports to markets that have set targets to reach a carbon neutral environment, South African manufacturers will need to move swiftly to embrace Fourth Industrial Revolution skills. It is against this backdrop that the Automotive Master Plan has set a number of ambitious targets to be met by 2035, including: The automotive industry is one of South Africa’s most important economic sectors, contributing 4.3% to the country’s gross domestic product. The industry is also the country’s fifth largest export sector accounting 18.1% of total exports. However, the sector – as the country – faces the intense challenge of unemployment alongside an unskilled labour force. Figures are disheartening, with Q2 numbers indicating the highest unemployment rate since 2022. Currently South Africa’s official unemployment rate stands at 33.5.9% for the second quarter of 2024, up from 32.9% for the first quarter of 2024, according to StatsSA. The expanded unemployment rate, which includes those who are no longer actively looking for employment, increased to 42.6%, up from the first quarter figure of 41.9%. These numbers represent the 8.4 million people who are now unemployed, with more than 76% of those having been without a job for more than a year. A focus on skills development and training has never been so important, notes Dr Zulu. “Skills development has the potential to turn the tide against unemployment,” he adds.

TASEZ’s academy celebrates skills development

News / By Jenny Tennant

The TASEZ Training Academy is gearing up for a day of celebration, with the handing over of certificates to their newest group of graduates on Thursday, 15 August 2024. The training team is hosting the event as part of its on-going commitment to much-needed skills development in a rapidly changing automotive industry. With the 163 graduates demonstrating exceptional dedication and skill in their training, the event is an opportunity to recognising their hard work and commitment.

TASEZ celebrates group of learners

News / By Jenny Tennant

The Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone (TASEZ) celebrated the achievements of 134 learners who graduated from a training course on organisational health and safety on 14 May 2024. The training, under the guidance of TASEZ’s safety, health and environmental manager Patricia Mandleni, is an important part of the special economic zone’s commitment to broaden economic participation by promoting small, micro, and medium sized enterprises and co-operatives, while promoting skills and technology transfer. Learners were called to the stage, where they were presented certificates by TASEZ CEO Dr Bheka Zulu. “It is important that TASEZ supports training of people in the automotive manufacturing and construction sectors as well as individuals from our neighbouring communities,” Dr Zulu noted. “We are driven by helping make sure that the South African Automotive Masterplan 2035 is a success, as well as helping develop a skilled workforce for our ever-changing industry which will need different high-level skills that embrace the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” he added. “We are determined to play a role in shaping the future of automotive excellence.” SAAM 2035 calls for transforming the industry and has identified six pillars for growth: According to the recently published Industrial Policy and Strategic Review – Transforming Vision into Action: Charting South Africa’s Industrial Future the rapid scaling-up of infrastructure spending should be a top priority, with specific focus on improving electricity and freight transport for established businesses, and to qualitatively upgrade infrastructure to support economic activities in working-class communities, especially by providing industrial, commercial and cultural centres. Training is an important aspect of transforming the economic landscape, as the country’s industrial development increases its pace and reach, ensuring the realisation of the National Development Plan’s Vision 2030, Dr Zulu added. The NDP identifies artisans and SMMEs as key elements in driving the economy through infrastructure development and manufacturing. The NDP has set a target of producing 30 000 artisans a year by 2030, with the country currently seeing 20 000 artisans qualify annually.