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PSETA Sector Skills Plan Update 2012-2013. Version 1, 23 September 2011.

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The PSETA

Sector Skills Plan Update 2012-13

Public Service Sector Education and Training

Authority (PSETA)

23 September 2011



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Signing-off of the Sector Skills Plan

2012-2013

We, the undersigned, hereby endorse and approve, on behalf of the Public

Service Sector Education and Training Authority (PSETA) and Management,

the contents of the Sector Skills Plan Update for the year 2012– 2013.

Signature ………………………….. Date: ………………………….

PSETA CEO

Signature ………………………….. Date: ………………………….

PSETA CHAIRPERSON (ADMINISTRATOR)

Signature ………………………….. Date: ………………………….

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SERVICE

AND ADMINISTRATION



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CONTENTS

1. SECTOR PROFILE ____________________________________________ 10

Introduction _________________________________________________________________________11

Functional mandates of the different spheres of government _________________________________13

The Business of Government ___________________________________________________________14

The PSETA Scope of Coverage _________________________________________________________16 1.4.1 Parliament and Provincial Legislatures ____________________________________________________ 21

Roles and responsibilities of key institutions in the public service that complement PSETA’s mandate

____________________________________________________________________________________22

Drivers of change in the sector __________________________________________________________24 1.6.1 Political ____________________________________________________________________________ 24 1.6.2 Economic ___________________________________________________________________________ 32 1.6.3 Social ______________________________________________________________________________ 35 1.6.4 Technology and work organisation-driven change ___________________________________________ 36 1.6.5 Environmental _______________________________________________________________________ 39 1.6.6 Legislative __________________________________________________________________________ 41

Government’s objectives, priority areas and outcomes ______________________________________42

The DPSA’s Strategic Plan 2010-2014 ___________________________________________________45

Sector priorities ______________________________________________________________________46

Conclusion __________________________________________________________________________47

2. DEMAND FOR SKILLS IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR ______________ 49

Employers in the sector _______________________________________________________________49 Overview of employers in the public service ______________________________________________________ 49 Size and geographic coverage _________________________________________________________________ 49

Employees in the sector _______________________________________________________________50 Employment by population group and gender _____________________________________________________ 50 Gender distribution __________________________________________________________________________ 50 Employees with disabilities ___________________________________________________________________ 51 Age distribution of public service employees _____________________________________________________ 52 Education qualifications of public service employees _______________________________________________ 52 Nature of appointment of public service employees ________________________________________________ 53

Analysis of data in 2011 WSP submissions ________________________________________________53

Planned Training for the Employed _____________________________________________________56

Planned training of the employed by NQF level ____________________________________________56

Beneficiaries completing training by NQF level ____________________________________________57

Recruitment trends in the public service _________________________________________________57

Completion rates of enrolled learners ____________________________________________________58

Recruitment trends in the public service _________________________________________________61

Challenges in quantifying skills needs in the public service __________________________________64

Skills needed in the public service _______________________________________________________64 Skills demand based on the competency approach to managing performance _____________________________ 65 Skills demand based on the changing business environment of the public service _________________________ 66



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Skills needed by Parliamentarians and Provincial Legislatures _______________________________67 Parliamentarians and their support staff __________________________________________________________ 67 Provincial legislatures _______________________________________________________________________ 68

Cross cutting skills needs ______________________________________________________________70 Types of cross cutting skills needed _____________________________________________________________ 70

Replacement demand _________________________________________________________________71

Conclusion __________________________________________________________________________72

3. SUPPLY OF SKILLS TO THE PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR ________________ 73

Introduction _________________________________________________________________________73

PSETA provider accreditation __________________________________________________________74

PSETA registered qualifications and unit standards/skills programmes _______________________75

Learning Programmes ________________________________________________________________75

Training delivered by PALAMA ________________________________________________________76 Induction of New Public Servants ______________________________________________________________ 76 Executive Development ______________________________________________________________________ 76

Skills development in the public service (WSP 2010 data) ___________________________________78 Planned training ____________________________________________________________________________ 78

Education and training throughput______________________________________________________79 4.7.1 GET: General Education and Training ____________________________________________________ 79 4.7.2 FET: Further Education and Training _____________________________________________________ 81 4.7.3 HET: Higher Education and Training _____________________________________________________ 82 4.7.4 The phenomenon of unemployed graduates ________________________________________________ 86

Conclusion __________________________________________________________________________87

4. PRIORITY SCARCE AND CRITICAL SKILLS INTERVENTIONS IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR _______________________________________________ 89

4.1 Introduction __________________________________________________________________89

4.2 Definitions ___________________________________________________________________89

4.3 Data sources and methodology _______________________________________________90

4.4 Scarce Skills in the Public Service Sector ______________________________________90

4.4.1. Scarce skills in the managers occupational category ________________________90

4.4.2. Scarce skills in the professionals occupational category _____________________91

4.4.3. Scarce skills in the technicians occupational category_______________________95

4.4.4. Scarce skills in the clerical and administrative workers category ____________96

4.4.5. Scarce skills in the elementary workers category ___________________________96

4.5 Critical Skills – the “Transversal” Senior Management Service Skills Set _______96

4.5.1. The strategic significance of the transversal SMS critical skills ______________96

4.5.2. The WSP data ______________________________________________________________97

4.5.3. The competency assessment tool validation report data ___________________103

4.5.4. The competency-based assessment data __________________________________103

4.6 Priority skills interventions __________________________________________________106



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4.6.1. Retirement and succession planning ______________________________________106

4.6.2. Raising the base level of learning in the sector ____________________________107

4.6.3. Unaccredited training _____________________________________________________107

4.6.4. Who is benefiting from skills development funding? _______________________107

4.6.5. The training of unemployed people ________________________________________108

4.6.6. Building supply-side capacity ______________________________________________108

4.6.7. Improving return on investment __________________________________________108

4.6.8. Capacitating the state to lead skills development across sectors ___________108

5. PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR SKILLS STRATEGY 2012-13 ______________ 109

5.1 Summary of Policy Frameworks Relevant to the Public Service Sector Skills Strategy __________________________________________________________________________109

Key national and sector strategies ______________________________________________________109

Equity targets (a cross-cutting objective) ________________________________________________111

5.2 Sector Strategic Objectives __________________________________________________111

5.2.1. Strategic Goal 2 ___________________________________________________________114

5.2.2. Strategic Goal 3 ___________________________________________________________114

5.2.3. Strategic Goal 4 ___________________________________________________________116

5.2.4. Strategic Goal 5 ___________________________________________________________122

5.3 Relationship between the Public Service Sector Skills Strategy and NSDS3, the HRDSA and the National Skills Accord _____________________________________________123

5.4 Conclusion __________________________________________________________________126

ANNEXURE 3: Analysis of level 4 questionnaires _____________________________ 33

ANNEXURE 4: The constructs underpinning the analysis of transfer of learning _____ 41 LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Public service as a percentage of total employment ............................................................. 12 Table 2: Core public service functions, competencies and their skills dimensions ............................ 16 Table 3: The PSETA Scope of Coverage ............................................................................................. 16 Table 4: Government departments that fall exclusively within the remit of PSETA .......................... 17 Table 5: Government departments that provide services that are not performed exclusively by

government and that are affiliated to a line function SETA ................................................................ 18 Table 6: Provincial administrations within the PSETA Scope of Coverage ......................................... 18 Table 7: National Public Entities within the PSETA Scope of Coverage ............................................. 20 Table 8: Provincial Public Entities within the PSETA Scope of Coverage ........................................... 21 Table 9: Roles and responsibilities of the DPSA, PALAMA and PSETA ............................................. 22 Table 10: HR CONNECT project implementation approach ............................................................ 39 Table 11: Legislation that facilitates the transformation of the public service .................................... 41 Table 12: Outputs, measures and activities for Outcome 12 ............................................................. 46



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Table 13: Number of persons employed at national and provincial government by race and gender

.............................................................................................................................................................. 50 Table 14: Number of persons with disabilities employed in national and provincial government

departments ......................................................................................................................................... 51 Table 15: Level of education achieved by public service employees ................................................... 52 Table 16: Level of education achieved by gender ................................................................................ 53 Table 17: Nature of appointment of public service employees .......................................................... 53 Table 18: Race and Gender by occupational category (excluding disability) ...................................... 53 Table 20: Occupational categories by age groups ............................................................................... 55 Table 21: The senior management service competency framework .................................................. 65 Table 22: The middle management service competency framework ................................................. 66 Table 23: Estimates of positions that needed to be filled in the period 2008/2009 ........................... 71 Table 24: Total active PSETA accredited providers per province ...................................................... 74 Table 25: PSETA registered qualifications and unit standards/skills programmes .............................. 75 Table 26: Qualifications registered in 2009-10 .................................................................................... 75 Table 27: Performance against NSDS II targets at March 2010 .......................................................... 76 Table 28: Training delivered by PALAMA to Nov 2010 ..................................................................... 77 Table 29: Planned training by occupational categories ........................................................................ 78 Table 30: Planned training for unemployed beneficiaries .................................................................... 79 Table 31: Planned ABET training ......................................................................................................... 79 Table 32: National Senior Certificate examination results for full-time candidates by gender (2009)

.............................................................................................................................................................. 80 Table 33: Current NATED pass rates on courses and subjects directly related to the business of

government (2009 results) .................................................................................................................. 81 Table 34: Current NATED pass rates on courses and subjects that could be useful to the

enhancement of the business of government ...................................................................................... 82 Table 35: Headcount of unduplicated student enrolments in Public Administration by type of

qualification 2008 ................................................................................................................................. 83 Table 36: Number of students who fulfilled the requirements a for Public Administration course by

type of qualification 2008 ..................................................................................................................... 84



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ACRONYMS

ABET Adult Basic Education and Training

AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

ASGISA Accelerated and Shared Growth initiative for South Africa

ATR Annual Training Report BUSA Business Unity South Africa

CBM Competency-Based Management

CETA Construction Sector Education and Training Authority

CPD Continuous Professional Development

CSIR Council for Scientific and Industrial Research

DBSA Development Bank of Southern Africa

DEA Department of Environmental Affairs

DoL Department of Labour

DPRU Development Policy Research Unit

DPSA Department of Public Service and Administration

ECD Early Childhood Development

EDP Executive Development Programme

EIA Environmental Impact Assessment

ESSP Environmental Sector Skills Plan

ETD Education Training and Development

FET Further Education and Training

GCIS Government Communication and Information System

GDP Gross Domestic Product

GET General Education and Training

GWM&E Government Wide Monitoring and Evaluation

HET Higher Education and Training

HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus

HOD Head of Department

HRCIP HR Connect Implementation Partners

HRD Human Resource Development

HRDSA Human Resource Development South Africa

HRIS Human Resources Information System

HWSETA Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority

ICT Information and Communication Technology

IDC Industrial Development Corporation IMF International Monetary Fund

IT Information Technology

JIPSA Joint Initiative for Priority Skills Acquisition

LGSETA Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority

M&E Monitoring and Evaluation

MMS Middle Management Service

MOE Municipal Owned Enterprise

MOU Memorandum of Understanding

MPCC Multi Purpose Community Centres

MTEF Medium Term Expenditure Framework

MTSF Mid-Term Strategic Framework

NCS National Curriculum Statement

NCV National Certificate (Vocational)



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NPA National Prosecution Authority

NQF National Qualifications Framework

NSC National Senior Certificate

NSDS National Skills Development Strategy

NSF National Skills Fund

OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

OFO Organising Framework for Occupations

OSD Occupation Specific Dispensation

PALAMA Public Administration Leadership and Management Academy

PES Public Employment Services

PFMA Public Finance Management Act

PPPFA Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act

PSA Public Service Association

PSC Public Service Commission

PSR Public Sector Reform

RDP Reconstruction and Development Programme RPL Recognition of Prior Learning

QCTO Quality Council for Trades and Occupations

SABC South African Broadcasting Corporation

SABS South African Bureau of Standards

SAP Structural Adjustment Programme

SAQA South African Qualifications Authority

SDF Skills Development Facilitator

SET Science Engineering and Technology

SETA Sector Education and Training Authority

SIC Standard Industrial Codes

SLA Service Level Agreement

SMME Small Medium and Micro Enterprises

SMS Senior Management Service

SOE State Owned Enterprise

SRN School Register of Needs

SSP Sector Skills Plan

TSC Thusong Service Centre

TWG Technical Working Group

VSP Voluntary Severance Programmes

WSP Workplace Skills Plan



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1. SECTOR PROFILE

The State of the State: A Profile of the Public Service Sector

“The challenges of service provision arise not fundamentally from a shortage of people, but from problems of skills and systems to deploy its human and financial resources. The report on the Capacity and Organisation of the State included several proposals in this direction. Most have been or are being implemented. Apart from the development of M&E and planning capacity, they include policy on a revolving door with the private sector; performance-based security of tenure for senior management service (SMS) members; a public-service skills audit; recruitment of retirees; re-invigoration of Batho Pele and tilting the balance towards career progression and away from lateral entry. Starting in 2005, the Governance and Administration (G&A) Cluster undertook capacity assessments covering the health, education, justice and economic departments. The findings, presented to the July 2007 Cabinet Lekgotla, identified various weaknesses. Among them were weaknesses in data systems to support management functions and in organisational structures. Remuneration was a key factor in almost half of terminations; and professionals in particular were found to be inadequately remunerated. Management was the focus of much discontent. Recruitment and selection processes were often ineffective; and red tape, especially in procurement and human resource processes, was seen as a major obstacle. Weaknesses were found in overall coordination between departments and across spheres, especially in planning. In addition to measures to strengthen planning, monitoring and evaluation, described elsewhere in this review, a number of “second-generation” public-service reforms are dealing with some of these problems. They include a host of reform initiatives to improve the human resource function in departments, and the Bill to create a single public service. The Public Administration Leadership and Management Academy (successor to the South African Management Development Institute) was inaugurated in August 2008, with a programme to bring about a large boost in public-service training in cooperation with other training institutions. If the state is to have the capacity to implement the elements of strategic posture listed above, it would need to have certain specific characteristics. Running through the different facets of this review are lessons about the capacity and limitations of the state in pursuit of the objectives of reconstruction and development. Improved performance and impact require institutional change. At the same time, one of the important post-2004 advances has been the crystallisation of thinking about what characteristics the developmental state would need to have at this stage of South Africa’s transformation. It would need a particular strategic orientation: one based on people-centred and people-driven change. The state should have the capacity to give leadership in the definition of a common national agenda and in mobilising all sectors of society to participate in implementing that agenda. This includes the capacity to prioritise in a strategic way, to identify which goals and initiatives have the potential to unite the nation in an effort that catalyses the rest of the national agenda. In this capacity of national leadership, which would be informed by its



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popular mandate, the state will need to have effective systems for interaction with all social partners. It would need organisational capacity, to ensure that its structures and systems effectively facilitate implementation of programmes decided upon, insisting on the highest possible standards of public service. This would mean continuing attention to issues of the macro-organisation of the state which have received profile in the findings of this review. It would include definition of roles and responsibilities across the three spheres, effective relations between the spheres and stability of the management system. This would include strengthening monitoring and evaluation capacity, including at points of delivery (such as schools, hospitals, clinics and so on). It should have the technical capacity to translate broad goals and objectives into practical programmes and projects and to see that they are implemented. This would require effective training, appropriate orientation and leadership of the Public Service, and recruitment and retention of skills. It would need to master long-term planning. This is a prerequisite not only of technical capacity but also of the state’s ability to give leadership to the rest of society by making long-term commitments that other actors can rely on. It would need the ability to discern when established practice needs to give way to bold and even unorthodox action, before crisis or stagnation sets in. Where necessary, that would also mean being able to take the nation along a path that might bring short-term sacrifices by various social actors in the interests of long-term gains for all”.

15 Year Review: 114-119

Introduction As detailed in the extract above from the 15 Year Review, the state faces a complex and

wide-ranging set of challenges in South Africa, both in terms of its role and its capacity

development.

The public sector is important, not only because of its role and function in the

transformation process in South Africa, but also because of its contribution to the

economy. While they may share a number of characteristics with private sector enterprises,

the organisations in the public sector have significantly different roles and responsibilities,

organisational structures, as well as complex decision-making processes and accountability

requirements.

The government sector, or public sector, has various components, as illustrated in the

diagram below.



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Figure 1: Illustration of the public sector

Source: http://www2.resbank.co.za/internet/Glossary.nsf

The core of the public sector is central government which includes all the different

government departments, extra-budgetary agencies, such as the Council for Scientific and

Industrial Research (CSIR) and the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), and

universities and Universities of Technology. The next level is general government which is

obtained by adding provincial and local government to central government. Provincial

government includes the administrations of the nine provinces, while local government

includes metropolitan councils, municipalities and district councils. The final level is the

public sector. The public sector includes general government and the public corporations

and other state enterprises. Public corporations are firms which are controlled by

government. Examples include Eskom, Mossgas, Armscor, Denel, the Industrial

Development Corporation (IDC), Rand Water, the South African Broadcasting

Corporation (SABC), the South African Post Office, Telkom and Transnet.

The public service is a large employer and therefore has a significant economic impact. In

March 2010, employment in the public service constituted 9.9 percent of total employment

in South Africa (see Table 1 below):

Table 1: Public service as a percentage of total employment

Province Total employment Public sector

employment

% of total provincial

employment

Eastern Cape 1,243,000 142,076 11.4%

Free State 768,000 56,599 7.4%

Gauteng 3,703,000 148,269 4%

KwaZulu-Natal 2,418,000 186,945 7.7%

Limpopo 859,000 116,169 13.5%

Mpumalanga 852,000 73,133 8.6%

North West 777,000 55,473 7.1%

http://www2.resbank.co.za/internet/Glossary.nsf



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Province Total employment Public sector

employment

% of total provincial

employment

Northern Cape 268,000 22,300 8.3%

Western Cape 1,915,000 77,696 4.1%

National Departments 393,651 3.1%

Total 12,803,000 1,272,311 9.9%

Sources: LFS Q1, 2010; PERSAL, March 2010

With its broad roles and responsibilities, the public service impacts on all other economic

sectors and industries and public servants need to be responsive to the needs of other

sectors. Moreover, the varied roles and responsibilities in the public sector give rise to a

wide range of skills needs in the sector.

Functional mandates of the different spheres of government The government of the Republic of South Africa is divided into spheres1. These are the

national, provincial and local spheres of government. National government is responsible for

policy formulation and making, developing national standards and norms, and rules and

regulations. Exclusive functional areas for provincial governments include

Abattoirs;

ambulance services;

Archives other than national archives;

Libraries other than national libraries;

Liquor licences;

Museums other than national museums;

provincial planning;

provincial cultural matters;

provincial recreation and amenities;

provincial roads and traffic;

provincial sport; and

veterinary services, excluding regulation of the profession.

Local governments take care of local government matters which include local amenities,

markets, municipal abattoirs, municipal roads, noise pollution and street trading. Local

government responsibilities and competent ices fall outside of the PSETA mandate and are

taken care of by the Local Government SETA.

National government's role is foremost one of policy making, with provincial governments

performing major roles in the provision of social and basic services. Provincial governments

are responsible for the implementation of major social services including school education,

health (including academic and regional hospitals, as well as primary health care), social

grants and welfare services, housing and provincial roads.

These mandates require different sets of competencies that are the responsibility of the

PSETA to develop and improve for public service employees. As can be seen from the

functional mandates of the different spheres, national government requires more policy

1 The Machinery of Government, Structure and Functions of Government. DPSA, 2003.



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making, planning and reporting competencies whereas provincial competencies are more

around implementation, M&E and public finance management.

The Business of Government Since the establishment of the PSETA, there has always been a tacit understanding that

government departments not aligned to line-function SETAs belong to the PSETA and that

all government departments were indirect members of the PSETA since the PSETA is

responsible for facilitating skills development and training, quality assurance and promotion

of transversal functions and qualifications across all government departments. This

understanding has led to confusion as transversal functions were not clearly defined.

One of the consequences of this confusion was that there was a dilution of the PSETA

mandate which resulted in the PSETA experiencing a gradual loss of relevance leading to a

situation where planning and operations of the PSETA became uninformed by relevant

considerations, e.g. the Service Level Agreement (SLA) with the Minister responsible for the

oversight of SETAs.

The PSETA is currently under administration and one of the responsibilities of the

administrator is to ensure that the core business of the PSETA is defined. In this context,

the concept of transversal functions has been debated and unpacked and the emerging

consensus is that government, by its nature, has certain functions, responsibilities and services that cannot be performed anywhere else. These functions, responsibilities and

services are in the exclusive domain of government as they are performed uniquely and/or

exclusively by government and require specific skills and competencies by employees in the

public service.

These functions, responsibilities and services (what was previously referred to as transversal

functions) can be broadly referred to as the business of government – the core business of

government. In this regard, the PSETA‟s niche and core business is the development and

promotion of skills and competencies that will ensure that people in the public service are

able to perform the business of government.

The functions and responsibilities that people in the public service must perform to enable

the delivery of the business of government include the following:

Development of legislation, regulations and policies (including Green and White

Paper processes);

General government administration and planning; o Planning (including MTEF and MTSF processes)

o Submissions, Cabinet Memos, Portfolio Committee Processes, Speechwriting

o Reporting to Ministers, Parliament, Senior Officials, Regulatory Bodies, etc.

(including monitoring and evaluating the performance of government)

o The understanding and application of Batho Pele principles

Management of Public Finances;

o Budgeting

o Supply Chain Management processes

o The PFMA

o Taxation



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Electoral Processes;

Project Management and Research; o Planning

o Implementation

o Monitoring and evaluation

Inter-governmental Relations;

International Relations and Co-operation (including Diplomacy);

Home Affairs services; and

Investment Promotion.

What the functions of public service employees listed above show is that the bulk of the

skills needed in the public service are more geared towards what could be termed critical

skills. In a document entitled “Framework for Identifying and Monitoring Scarce and Critical

Skills” of 2005 , the Department of Labour defined critical skills as follows:

Critical skills refer to specific key or generic and “top up” skills within an occupation. In the

South African context there are two groups of critical skills:

a) Key or generic skills, including (in SAQA-NQF terminology) critical cross-field

outcomes. These would include cognitive skills (problem solving, learning to learn),

language and literacy skills, mathematical skills, ICT skills and working in teams.

b) Particular occupationally specific “top-up” skills required for performance within

that occupation to fill a “skills gap” that might have arisen as a result of changing

technology or new forms of work organisation.

Many of the functions required to deliver the business of government fall squarely within

the definition of critical skills as defined by the Department of Labour. The PSETA is

responsible for the development and promotion of key generic skills as listed above as well as “top-up” skills required for performance within an occupation to fill a “skills gap” that

could arise as a result of the specialised form of work organisation that is exclusively found

in the public service environment. In this regard, the PSETA proposes that its preferred

focus be on the facilitation of skills development in areas that will enable public service

employees to deliver the business of government.

This does not in any way suggest that the public service has no shortages of technical skills

such as public finance managers, artisans and accountants. There is a shortage of these skills

but the development and promotion of these skills rests with other SETAs which are

responsible for those particular functions and which the PSETA can sign MOUs with to

ensure that public service employees also get training in these skills and occupations. What

this report is saying is that the PSETA proposes that its preferred focus be to drive the

development of skills and competencies in areas that will make the delivery of the business

of government more effective and efficient.

The implication for PSETA is that it has to develop and promote skills development

interventions and qualifications that speak to certain skill dimensions which will lead to the

public service developing certain key competencies that their jobs require as illustrated in

Table 2. The PSETA proposes to only focus on the functions of government that it

(government) carries out in its own specially defined way, for example, government planning

and budgeting, which is done in a three-year cycle.



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Table 2: Core public service functions, competencies and their skills dimensions

Function Competency Skills dimension

General government administration

and planning

Management

Strategic planning

Operational planning

Monitoring, evaluation, supervision

Leadership

Financial management

IT

Computer skills (windows, internet)

Ability to work with databases

Ability to interpret statistics

Knowledge management and efficient filing

Project Management and Research Analysis and critical thinking

Problem solving

Quantitative/qualitative analysis

Decision making

Planning/organising

Monitoring and evaluating

Reporting Communication

Conflict resolution/negotiation

Writing skills: reports, speeches, policy papers,

ministerial submissions, departmental

submissions

Presentation skills

Development of legislation, regulations

and policies Legislation/administration

Knowledge of South African laws

Knowledge and application of governmental

processes and procedures

Ability to draft related legislative documents

Service delivery Organisational, environmental

and customer awareness

Political acumen

Internal and external customer service

Management of Public Finances Financial, purchasing,

reporting

Knowledge of the PFMA

Budgeting processes

Accounting

Supply chain management

Reporting and auditing Knowledge of government purchasing processes

and procedures

Generating and interpreting financial reports

The PSETA Scope of Coverage The scope of coverage of PSETA as determined in terms of the Skills Development Act 97

of 1998, as amended and also covered in the public service sector‟s Standard Industrial

Codes (SIC) gazetted in Schedule 2 of Gazette Number 9417 Volume 545 of 11 November

2010, is as follows:

Table 3: The PSETA Scope of Coverage

SIC Code Scope of Coverage

91101 Government Departments

91102 Provincial Administrations

9110F Parastatals n.e.c. (Public Entities)

91106 Department of Foreign Affairs

91107 Department of Trade and Industry

In terms of its scope of coverage, the PSETA is primarily responsible for the provision of

transversal skills (the business of government) in all national and provincial departments,



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national and provincial public entities, national parliament and provincial legislatures. It is

worth emphasising that skills of a technical and occupational nature, e.g. public accountants,

will be the responsibility of the line function SETA that is aligned to that technical expertise

which in this case will be FASSET. In the event that a public official needs these kinds of

skills, PSETA proposes to sign an MoU with the relevant SETA to ensure that the affected

SETA develops and quality assures the required programme which the public officials would

then participate in.

Below is a more detailed list of all government departments, provincial administrations and

public entities that fall within the PSETA‟s scope of coverage. It is important to note that

some departments will also be affiliated to a line function SETA because of the nature of

their responsibilities and specialised operations which belong to a particular economic

sector that another SETA would be responsible for.

However, it should also be understood that all government departments and provincial

administrations have functions, processes and services that they uniquely perform as government entities. These functions, processes and services are referred to as the Business

of Government as discussed earlier.

Table 4 provides a list of government departments that fall exclusively within the remit of

PSETA. What this means is that these departments do not belong to any of the line function

SETAs and all of their skills development needs are the responsibility of PSETA.

Table 4: Government departments that fall exclusively within the remit of PSETA

Government Department

Economic Development

Government Communications and Information Systems (GCIS)

Home Affairs

International Relations and Co-operation

Labour

Public Administration Leadership and Management Academy*

Public Enterprises

Public Service and Administration

Public Service Commission

Rural Development and Land Reform

Statistics South Africa

Trade and Industry

The Presidency

* PALAMA is not a department per se, but is an academy that is responsible for the provision of training for public sector

employees in general.

Table 5 provides a list of government departments that provide services that are not

performed exclusively by government. In this instance, the affected departments belong to a

line function SETA that is responsible for skills development of the technical competencies

that are required by the functions of that department; however, the PSETA is still

responsible for the transversal skills (business of government) of officials in those

departments. This is because even though these departments have specialist technical

functions, they still perform functions that fall within the definition of the business of

government as defined earlier in this chapter, and in that regard, still need to have the skills

to perform functions related to the business of government.



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Table 5: Government departments that provide services that are not performed exclusively by

government and that are affiliated to a line function SETA

Government Department

Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Arts and Culture

Basic Education

Communications

Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs

Correctional Services

Defence and Military Veterans

Energy

Environmental Affairs

Health

Higher Education and Training

Human Settlements

Independent Complaints Directorate

Justice and Constitutional Development

Mineral Resources

National Intelligence Agency

National Treasury

Police Civilian Secretariat

Public Works

Science and Technology

Social Development

SA National Academy of Intelligence

SA Police Service

SA Revenue Service

SA Secret Service

Sports and Recreation South Africa

Tourism

Transport

Water Affairs

Women, Children and People with Disabilities

Table 6 shows the provincial departments and the SETAs they are affiliated to. Firstly, all

provincial departments that have a specialised technical competency belong to the SETA

that is in that sector of specialisation. Offices of the Premier, planning departments,

departments of rural development and economic development departments are then

proposed to belong to PSETA.

However, PSETA is responsible for everything related to the business of government

(transversal skills) in all provincial departments. In practice, this means that when provincial

departments submit WSPs to their SETAs, they should all submit the section of the WSP

that deals with the business of government (transversal skills) to PSETA.

Table 6: Provincial administrations within the PSETA Scope of Coverage

Provincial Administration Provincial Departments

Eastern Cape Provincial Government

Office of the Premier

Rural Development and Agrarian Reform

Education and Training

Provincial Planning and Finance

Health

Human Settlements

Local Government and Traditional Affairs

Roads and Public Works

Safety and Liaison

Social Development, Women, Youth and People with Disabilities

Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture



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Transport

Free State Provincial Government


Agriculture

Co-operative Governance, Traditional Affairs and

Human Settlements

Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental

Affairs

Education

Health

Police, Roads and Transport

Provincial Treasury

Public Works and Rural Development

Social Development

Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation

Gauteng Provincial Government


Agriculture and Rural Development

Community Safety

Economic Development and Planning

Education

Finance

Health and Social Development

Local Government and Housing

Infrastructure Development

Roads and Public Transport

Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation

KwaZulu Natal Provincial Government


Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural

Development

Arts, Culture, Sport and Recreation

Economic Development and Tourism

Education

Finance

Health

Public Works

Local Government, Housing and Traditional Affairs

Social Development

Transport and Community Safety and Liaison

Limpopo Provincial Government


Agriculture

Economic Development, Environment and Tourism

Education


Local Government and Housing

Public Safety and Liaison

Provincial Treasury

Public Works

Roads and Public Transport

Sport, Arts and Culture

Mpumalanga Provincial Government


Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Administration

Community Safety, Security and Liaison

Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs

Culture, Sport and Recreation

Economic Development, Environment and Tourism

Education

Finance


Human Settlement

Public Works, Roads and Transport

North West Provincial Government Office of the Premier



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Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Rural

Development

Economic Development and Tourism

Education

Finance


Human Settlement

Local Government and Traditional Affairs

Public Safety

Public Works, Roads and Transport

Northern Cape Provincial Government


Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development

Co-operative Governance, Human Settlement and

Traditional Affairs

Education

Environment and Nature Conservation

Finance, Economic Affairs and Tourism

Health

Roads and Public Works

Social Services and Population Development

Sport, Arts and Culture

Transport, Safety and Liaison

Western Cape Provincial Government


Agriculture

Community Safety

Cultural Affairs and Sport

Education

Finance, Economic Development and Tourism

Health

Housing

Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning

Social Development

Transport and Public Works

There are public entities that have been established under the executive authorities of

various government departments who also fall within the PSETA scope. These are shown in

Table 7 below.

What is important to note is that all of the public entities listed in Tables 7 and 8 have been

set up by legislation and are therefore required to fulfil the mandate and requirements of

that legislation. In so doing, these entities are performing the business of government and

would therefore require the specialist skills required to perform the business of

government. In that regard, they are within the remit of the PSETA and their skills

development needs should be the responsibility of the PSETA.

Table 7: National Public Entities within the PSETA Scope of Coverage

Schedule National Public Entity

2 Independent Development Trust

2 Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa Limited

3A African Renaissance and International Co-operation Fund

3A Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration

3A Competition Commission

3A Competition Tribunal

3A Estate Agency Affairs Board

3A International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa

3A National Consumer Commission

3A National Consumer Tribunal



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3A National Credit Regulator

3A National Empowerment Fund

3A National Gambling Board of South Africa

3A National Lotteries Board

3A NEDLAC

3A Productivity SA

3A Public Service Bargaining Council

3A SA National Accreditation System

3A Small Enterprise Development Agency

3A Unemployment Insurance Fund

Centre for Public Service Innovation

Provincial public entities covered by the PSETA scope are the following:

Table 8: Provincial Public Entities within the PSETA Scope of Coverage

Schedule Provincial Public Entity

3C Eastern Cape Gambling and Betting Board

3C Free State Gambling and Racing Board

3C Gauteng Economic Development Agency

3C Gauteng Enterprise Propeller

3C Gauteng Gambling Board

3C Gauteng Partnership Fund

3C KZN Gambling Board

3C Limpopo Development Enterprise

3C Limpopo Gambling Board

3C Limpopo Panel of Mediators

3C Limpopo Planning Commission

3C Mpumalanga Gambling Board

3C Northern Cape Gambling Board

3C North West Gambling Board

3C Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board

3C Western Cape Language Committee

3C Western Cape Provincial Development Council

3D East London Industrial Development Zone Corporation

3D Eastern Cape Development Corporation

3D Free State Development Corporation

3D Ithala Development Finance Corporation

3D Limpopo Development Corporation

3D Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency

3D North West Development Corporation

Lastly, national Parliament (including the National Council of Provinces) and the nine (9)

provincial legislatures also fall within the PSETA Scope of Coverage.

1.4.1 Parliament and Provincial Legislatures

Since the PSETA‟s scope also includes parliament and legislatures, it is useful to provide a

brief synopsis of what the institutions are responsible for and to highlight the skills required

by parliamentarians and members of legislatures.

Yamamoto (2007) defines parliamentary oversight as “the review, monitoring and

supervision of government and public agencies, including the implementation of policy and

legislation” (p. 9). The definition focuses on the purpose and nature of the oversight

activities rather than on the procedural stages in which they take place. It covers the work

of parliamentary committees and plenary sittings, as well as hearings during the

parliamentary stage of bills and the budgetary cycle.



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From this definition, he describes the key functions of parliamentary oversight as follows:

to detect and prevent abuse, arbitrary behaviour, or illegal and unconstitutional

conduct on the part of the government and public agencies. At the core of this

function is the protection of the rights and liberties of citizens ;

to hold the government to account in respect of how the taxpayers‟ money is used.

It detects waste within the machinery of government and public agencies. Thus it can

improve the efficiency, economy and effectiveness of government operations ;

to ensure that policies announced by the government and authorized by parliament

are actually delivered. This function includes monitoring the achievement of goals set

by legislation and the government‟s own programmes ; and

to improve the transparency of government operations and enhance public trust in the government, which is itself a condition of effective policy delivery.

Roles and responsibilities of key institutions in the public service that complement PSETA’s mandate

The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) has been acting as the

administrative agent of the PSETA. This DPSA-PSETA dichotomy created confusion in terms

of accountability to stakeholders and also had an impact on the planning functions and

operations of the PSETA. In later years, this role confusion also spilled over to the Public

Administration Leadership and Management Academy (PALAMA) where certain PSETA

core functions ended up being done by PALAMA.

Table 9 provides an illustration of the different legislative mandates and functions of these

three institutions whose mandates are very specific yet complement each other. These

organisations have a strong relation to one another because in one form or another, they

are all responsible for human resource development in the public sector. This close

relationship of their responsibilities has created problems in the past in that at the time

when PSETA was not functioning effectively, PALAMA moved in and closed the gap in terms

of quality assuring programmes and other functions that a SETA is mandated to perform by

legislation. The legislative mandates and roles and responsibilities as outlined below are

meant to remind readers that these organisations have very specific and legislated mandates

and that the areas of collaboration and complementarities can be identified within these

specific mandates.

Table 9: Roles and responsibilities of the DPSA, PALAMA and PSETA

Organisation Legislative Mandate Roles and Responsibilities

DPSA

The Constitution, in particular

Chapters 3 and 10

The Public Service Act

Public Service Regulations

Government‟s political mandate

and priorities

Transform and modernise the public service;

Oversee changes to the structure of the public service;

Establish norms and standards for human resources

management and development, conditions of service, labour

relations, IT and service delivery;

Issue directives and regulations for the public service;

Formulate the national anti-corruption strategy; and

Exercise oversight over the State Information Technology

Agency (SITA).

PALAMA

Constituted as a Schedule 1

Department by the Public Service

Act No. 103 of 1994, as amended

by the Public Service Act No. 5 of

1999

A training institution listed as a national department in

Schedule 1

The management and administration of such institution shall

be under the control of the Minister.

Such institution shall provide such training or cause such



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training to be provided or conduct such examinations or

tests or cause such examinations or tests to be conducted

as the Head of the institute may with the approval of the

Minister decide or as may be prescribed as a qualification

for the appointment or transfer of persons in or to the

public service;

Such institution may issue diplomas or certificates or cause

diplomas or certificates to be issued to persons who have

passed such examinations.

PSETA The Skills Development Act of

1998, as amended

A SETA must

a) develop a sector skills plan within the framework of the

national skills development strategy;

b) implement its sector skills plan by

establishing learning programmes;

approving workplace skills plans and annual training

reports;

allocating grants in the prescribed manner to

employers, education and skills development providers

and workers; and

monitoring education and skills development provision in the sector;

c) promote Iearning programmes by

identifying workplaces for practical work experience;

supporting the development of learning materials;

improving the facilitation of learning; and

assisting in the conclusion of agreements for learning

programmes to the extent that it is required;

d) register Iearnership agreements;

e) perform any functions delegated to it by the QCTO in

terms of section 261;

f) collect and disburse the skills development levies in its

sector;

g) liaise with the National Skills Authority on

the national skills development policy;

the national skills development strategy; and

its sector skills plan;

h) report to the Director-General on

its income and expenditure; and

the implementation of its service level agreement; i) liaise with the provincial offices and labour centres of the

Department and any education body established under any

law regulating education in the Republic to improve

information

about placement opportunities; and

between education and skills development providers

and the Iabour market; and

liaise with the skills development forums established in each province in such manner and on such issues as

may be prescribed;

j) subject to Section 14,

appoint staff necessary for the performance of its

functions;

promote the national standard established in terms of

section 30B; and

liaise with the QCTO regarding occupational qualifications; and

k) perform any other duties imposed by this Act or consistent

with the purposes of this Act.



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In summary, DPSA plays a central role in co-ordinating and giving administrative leadership

to the rest of government departments. From determining policies, procedures, manuals

and directives to fostering labour peace in the public service.

PALAMA is generally a training provider whose main mandate is to ensure the necessary

provision of high-quality practical management training for junior and middle managers in all

three spheres of government.

The PSETA‟s function is mainly to facilitate skills development and training in the public

service. It is accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) and its

activities are monitored to determine and demonstrate compliance with SAQA

requirements, and in turn PSETA is responsible for the accreditation of constituent

education and training providers such as PALAMA and similar provincial public service

training academies. PSETA‟s other main function is to determine the skills needs of the

public service and to ensure that these skills are provided.

Drivers of change in the sector Drivers of change are discussed in the form of a PESTEL analysis.

1.6.1 Political

The role of the public service is ensuring that government meets the basic needs of citizens,

building the economy, democratising the state, developing the country‟s human resources

and nation building. These responsibilities are influenced by political imperatives as

described below.

1.6.1.1 Public service transformation agenda

The transformation process in the public service, though not an end in itself, is regarded as

the key instrument for bringing about a fundamentally different public service in which

improved, efficient and effective service delivery takes priority above all else. This process

of transformation essentially focuses on two aspects.

First of all, it involves creating a public service that is better, faster and more responsive to

the citizens‟ needs (DPSA; 1997). This process of changing the organisational culture and

mode of operation remains a constant challenge, in spite of the enormous strides and

successes that have already been made and achieved in this regard.

The second dimension of the transformation project involves making the public service

representative so that it reflects the demographic realities of South African society. The

White Paper on the Transformation of the Public Service supported by the White Paper on

Affirmative Action in the Public Service, calls for making the public service representative

and provides guidelines to departments in terms of race, gender and disability.

In the State of the Public Service Report 2010, the Public Service Commission (PSC)

indicates that good progress has been made at the Senior Management Service (SMS) level.

According to this report, the public service has met (and in fact even exceeded) the



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representivity target for black people (including African, Coloured and Indian). The target

was that 75 percent of members of the Senior Management Service should comprise black

people by 2005. Black people comprised 79 percent of the Senior Management Service as at

30 September 2009.

In respect of people with disabilities, the numbers in the broader public service are still

lagging behind significantly. The State of the Public Service Report 2010 indicates that the

number of people with disability in the public service was 0.22% in September 2009, which

is still far below the target of 2 percent (Public Service Commission; 2010).

These two dimensions of the transformation project will continue to drive and constitute a

significant burden on the skills as well as learning and development requirements in the

public service. A significant part of any transformation agenda involves the development of

skills of the officials that are the beneficiaries of that transformation. Without any relevant

skills, the aim of transformation will be severely undermined and its key objective missed in

the process. PSETA, being the key institution responsible for skills development in the public service, will have to identify the skills gap that need to be filled in order for the

beneficiaries of transformation to have the desired impact. PSETA will also need to ensure

that while transformation targets are being met, the beneficiaries have the skills to perform

in those occupations at the various levels.

1.6.1.2 Progress made in the implementation of the transformation

agenda

The democratic government on its accession to power in 1994 identified institutional

transformation and reform of the public service as one of the key medium to long term

programmes to drive implementation of government policies designed to achieve social and

economic transformation. Section 195 of the Constitution outlined the basic values and

principles governing public administration.

Critical to the transformation agenda was the evolution of a public service that is

representative, transparent, effective, efficient, accountable and responsive to the needs of

the people. The creation of a people-centred public service characterised by values of

equity, quality, timeousness and a strong service ethos was to be the nexus of the

transformation programme of government2.

The government has been continuously engaged in the transformation of the public service

and in the process various public sector reforms have been implemented which include,

among others, rightsizing the public sector; the creation of the Senior Management System

(SMS), the use of the contract system for heads of departments; the introduction of

Performance Management and attempts to improve service delivery.

The University of Cape Town‟s Professor Robert Cameron presented a paper at the

political studies departmental seminar in April 2009 which explored the effects of these

reforms. This section highlights some of his key observations and where appropriate,

explores what the implications are for skills development in the public service.

2 Public Sector Transformation Summit Concept Paper, Eastern Cape Provincial Government, November 2010



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Rightsizing the public service

During the 1990s, the South African government, as part of its Public Sector Reform (PSR)

programme, had an objective to downsize the public service. This was because downsizing

was supposed to reduce the number of staff employed in activities that had become

obsolete and to make provision for growth in high-priority areas. Downsizing arose from an

agreement between the state and the unions which linked the proper remuneration of the

workers to the achievement of an appropriately sized public service. However, Cameron‟s

report points out that it was not successful. This was acknowledged by the government

(Presidential Review Commission, 1998).

Voluntary Severance Programmes (VSPs) were introduced by government in 1996 to

encourage existing staff to retire prematurely. One of the major obstacles was the large

number of lower-level personnel who could not be redeployed and did not apply for VSPs

because of limited marketability (Ncholo quoted in Cameron, 2009).

Cameron‟s paper points out that this strategy was not successful for a number of reasons. For example, downsizing targets were only prepared to offer a limited number of posts for

abolition and the VSPs led to the departure of skilled and experienced personnel which led

to the retention of non productive employees.

While the situation is improving, the public service is still faced with the problem of

attracting people with the right skills, as well as developing and improving the skills of those

currently in the public service.

After 2000 there was an increase in public sector staff from 1,031,594 in December 2000 to

1,204,525 in March 2008 and 1,272,311 in March 2010. In particular the government has

focused on the introduction of measures to create a sustainable pool of middle managers to

compete for senior management positions.

Government‟s plan is to grow a more professional public service, which means that the

PSETA has to develop programmes that are aimed at supervisory levels and middle

management. As van der Merwe (1992) has observed, training should focus mainly on the

leadership of [government] institutions because what makes employees perform is the

exercise of leadership from the top down and the ability of departmental leaders at all levels

to instil fundamental philosophical principles of responsible and ethical behaviour, efforts to

communicate objectives and to promote an understanding of the department‟s role and

purpose among all employees.

In line with Mafunisa‟s (2000) argument, in building competence, managers have to “ensure

that juniors have the skills, knowledge and experience to perform assigned tasks by

coaching and mentoring them (p. 83).

This is not meant to suggest that the needs of intermediate-level employees in the public

service should be ignored in favour of supervisory and leadership levels, but rather that

while a major emphasis should be on managers and leaders, there is still (and always will be)

a need for training of intermediate-level employees that will complement the coaching and mentoring that supervisors, managers and leaders should provide.



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FET colleges are suited to offer this type of training to intermediate-level employees as will

be further discussed in the chapter on the supply of skills.

Senior Management Service (SMS)

The government instituted the SMS as from the beginning of 2001. It consisted of

employees of the top four levels, namely Director-General, Deputy Director-General, Chief

Director and upwards. The key objective was to improve the ability of the public service to

recruit and retain quality managers. The SMS was put in place in order to create a mobile

and flexible public service-wide pool of scarce resources for utilisation of resources

throughout the public service.

There has been a massive expansion in the SMS since its inception. In 2001 there were

4,623 employees in the top 4 levels. By 2008 this had risen to 8,592 (Cameron and Milne,

2008 in Cameron 2009).

There was a major review of the SMS system in 2007. The results of the review were mixed. On the positive side it found the flexible remuneration package system has enabled

departments to recruit and retain SMS members. It has enabled the public service to

compete fairly with the private sector, high turnover rates had been reduced significantly,

the competency based system had added value, it had improved capacity of the public

service and most SMS members held postgraduate degrees.

However, it found that training, coaching and mentoring needed to be improved and key

human resource practices such as competency assessments for development purposes and

the performance management system needed to be more effectively applied. The study

found that the recruitment process takes an excessively long time. Vacancy levels across all

ranks are unacceptably high, and are rising.

What this identifies for the PSETA again is the importance of coaching and mentoring skills

programmes for senior managers in the public service.

Contract appointments

This approach involves hiring people on contract, often from outside the public sector. It

also entails terminating the contracts of those who do not perform. One of the concerns of

government is to ensure that the expertise and experience of Heads of Departments

(HoDs) is not prematurely lost to the public service. The 3-5 year contract was accordingly

seen as being problematic. Although the contracts are renewable, a survey of former and

current HoDs showed that the system can create uncertainties for HoDs resulting in some

of them leaving the public service prematurely.

The turnover of administrative leadership has impacted negatively upon service delivery.

The turnover survey has shown that it takes 6 months to a year for a new HoD to be

embedded.

On the positive side the contract system was viewed as a basis to bring in new people and

ideas as well as facilitating the departure of weak HoDs. It can reduce complacency, lead to change and innovation and facilitate the displacement of poor performers. Most of the

respondents to Professor Cameron‟s survey were still supportive of the contract system

believing it was a key strategy for ensuring that there is a high level of performance.



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Performance measurement

In South Africa the Public Service Law Amendment Act of 1997 introduced Performance

Management in the public service. The Public Service Regulations of 1999 gave performance

management more flesh. It was originally for Directors and above. Senior managers who

were not head of departments would enter into a performance management contract with

his/her immediate supervisor, while in the case of the Director-General it would be with

his/her Minister.

There have been substantive problems of implementation and compliance. The PSC has

raised the problems of performance evaluation in a number of its reports. In 2004 (PSC,

2004:16, 34) it pointed out that performance management is still a major challenge facing

the public service. Compliance with guidelines was described as erratic and inconsistent. In

2006 it revealed that 52 percent of grievances relate to the way performance assessments

are conducted (PSC, 2006A: 53). There was also concern about low level of compliance of

signing of performance agreements by senior officials (PSC, 2007B:45-46).

Service delivery

The White Paper on Transforming Public Service Delivery (RSA, 1997) is commonly known

as the Batho Pele initiative. Its aim was to make service delivery a priority in the public

service. It called for an improvement in the way services are improved.

The South African government has accordingly attempted to make service delivery a

priority. What the evidence suggests is that there has been mixed results in terms of service

delivery.

Firstly, there is the question of the organisational culture. The working environment of

public servants has impacted negatively on Batho Pele‟s effectiveness. It was pointed out

that management failure to act decisively on ethical transgressions and alleged corruption

coupled with a general wave of materialistic greed undermined the promotion and

application of professional ethics and Constitutional values (DPSA 2007:13, 47).

Secondly, there is a problem of poor skills levels within the public service which makes the

achievement of developmental state goals unrealistic. The poor and mediocre quality of staff

was raised by a number of staff including three Director-Generals and the ex-Minister. The

ex-Minister raised concern about the lack of professionalism within the public sector. One

Director-General said that most public servants can quote the Batho Pele Charter but it is

not translated into action.

1.6.1.3 Institutional changes

The introduction of the fourth democratic regime under the leadership of President Zuma

has seen a fair amount of institutional restructuring and change. Two important additions

within the Presidency are the establishment of the National Planning Commission and the

Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation.

This department, in close co-operation with the National Planning Commission, will focus on improving the performance of all spheres of government and other organs of state. This

will be achieved in three main ways.



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a) Management of outcomes through Ministerial accountability for

improving delivery performance

The Department has played a supporting role in establishing the performance agreements

with Ministers and will co-ordinate the development of delivery agreements, focusing on a

small set of outcomes and a selected group of outputs. Ministers will cascade results-

focused lines of accountability down to senior officials. This may also include legislation on

programme evaluation and other M&E dimensions.

b) Institutionalising the government-wide monitoring and evaluation system

(GWM&E)

The Department's work will build on existing initiatives with a renewed focus on improving

input, output and outcome measures. The capacity building strategy for GWM&E will be

strengthened to accelerate development of the technical skills and capabilities required for

outcomes-focused performance management. This fits squarely in PSETA‟s mandate and should be identified as one of the priority areas for PSETA.

1.6.1.4 The Human Resource Development Council (HRD Council)

The HRD Council takes the place of, and expands upon, the Joint Initiative for Priority Skills

Skills Acquisition (Jipsa) which was a programme that formed part of the Accelerated

Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (AsgiSA). The HRD Council has been mandated

to advise government on matters related to Human Resource Development of the country

for an inclusive growth path as well as monitor progress made towards achievement of

commitments made in the new HRD strategy. The HRD Council will be assisted by the

HRD Technical Working Group (HRD-TWG) whose role is the following:

Identify and make recommendations regarding key education and training outcomes

required to underpin a sustainable HRD strategy in the areas of schooling, higher

education and the national system of science, technology and innovation.

Drawing primarily on available data, identify and prioritise key skills and education and training outcomes.

Analyse and prioritise key skills to meet the intermediate to long term higher level

requirements of industry, state-owned enterprises and government, in particular

regarding government‟s infrastructure development programme, major private

sector investments, and local government capacity building.

Identify skills requirements for labour absorptive strategies, for example through the provision of basic services, social services, public works programmes.

Critically review existing strategies to strengthen South Africa‟s HRD base including

the National Skills Development Strategy, the Department of Education‟s Dinaledi

schools initiative, the THRIP initiative of the National Research Foundation and the

Department of Trade and Industry, policy initiatives of the Department of Education

to promote research and development at South African universities, and others.

Analyse potential co-ordination problems and blockages and obstacles in the policy, regulatory, funding and institutional environments.

Identify priorities for the importation of scarce skills and make recommendations to

facilitate this together with recommendations for skills transfer.



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Advise on strategies to strengthen employer and worker involvement in the

education and training systems, to encourage greater relevance and responsiveness

and improve the employability of graduates.

Identify and secure approval for „quick win‟ initiatives to boost skills production and to publicise and build confidence in the priority skills agenda.

1.6.1.5 New ministries

In terms of restructuring at a national level, new departments and ministries were created

and there were some mergers and divisions of certain departments. The Department of

Minerals and Energy was split into two separate departments of Mineral Resources and of

Energy, each with a Minister. The Department of Education was split into separate

ministries, one for Basic Education and the other for Higher Education and Training. The

Department of Water Affairs and Forestry joined the Department of Agriculture which in

turn became the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. The Department of

Environmental Affairs and Tourism became the Department of Environmental Affairs as

Tourism was set up as a new ministry. The Departments of Environmental Affairs and

Water Affairs have been made part of the same ministry. A new Economic Development

Department has been established to focus on economic policymaking for the country. A

new ministry has been created for Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities to

emphasise the need for equity and access to development opportunities for the vulnerable

groups in our society. A new Ministry of State Security has also been created.

1.6.1.6 The re-configured government clusters

Clusters were established to foster an integrated approach to governance that is aimed at

improving government planning, decision making and service delivery. The main objective is

to ensure proper co-ordination of all government programmes at national and provincial

levels.

The main functions of the clusters are to ensure alignment of government wide priorities;

facilitate and monitor the implementation of priority programmes; and provide a

consultative platform on cross-cutting priorities and matters being taken to Cabinet.

1.6.1.7 Innovation in Public Service and Administration

The public service is increasingly under pressure to find better ways of doing things and

optimising the use of resources to provide efficient and effective services to individuals,

communities and businesses as customers. The recognition that it is necessary to

continuously improve the quality of services often means that the public service needs to

systematically consider new and alternative service delivery models, methods and

techniques. A number of examples of these innovative practices already exist in the country.

They include the following:

The development of shared service facilities such as the Gauteng Shared Services – a world class internal support service unit driven by efficiency and a focus on quality

service delivery.

The establishment of Gateway Service Centres in underserved communities within

existing Multi-Purpose Community Centres (MPCCs) or Thusong Centres. Gateway



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Service Centres are technology-enabled centres that provide access to a range of

appropriate government services and where possible, provide these services in an

integrated way.

Involving the private sector through the use of a variety of methods and techniques that include corporatisation, public-private partnerships, outsourcing and

contracting.

While there is evidence that the government is continuously exploring new and innovative

ways of doing things and reaching all communities in the country, there are still problems

with implementing these initiatives and one of the most highlighted of these problems is the

issue of the availability of skills.

Farelo and Morris wrote a paper on the status of e-Government in South Africa and they

found that the country faces significant human capital development challenges in building the

Inclusive Information Society that the country desires. One of the key challenges they

identified is the shortage of skilled ICT people in the country which is also exasperated by

the “brain drain” of skilled ICT personnel and other professionals to developed countries,

and from the public to the private sector.

They note that currently the education and training system is unable to produce the

essential and technical management skills that most employers seek. The School Register of

Needs (SRN) survey of 2000 reveals that schools that used computers for teaching and

learning in 2000 was 12.3 percent and those that had access to email and internet was 6.9

percent. This has a direct link to the quality of ICT related qualifications produced by

universities and universities of technology.

According to Patterson and Roodt (2008)3, the number of graduates from the computer

engineering and technology study fields had an average annual growth of 14.3 percent, off a

low base of 47 graduates in 1996. Similarly, graduates in business data systems grew at 12.6

percent per annum off a low base of 36 graduates. In the same period, mathematical science

graduates grew annually at 7.3 percent, while those in electrical engineering and technology

grew at 3.8 percent over the period.

As part of the study, they also did some projections of future demand of ICT skills in the economy. Their projections suggest that by 2015 there will be a shortage of:

29,027 graduates qualified for employment as a computer professionals or computer

associate professionals.

28,817 graduates qualified for employment as electronic and telecommunications

engineers or technicians.

In terms of Thusong Centres, the PSC published a Report on the Assessment of the Effectiveness of Thusong Service Centres (TSCs) in Integrated Service Delivery in 2010

which showed that departmental representatives at TSCs receive specific functional (e.g.

Civic Services), service delivery and Batho Pele awareness training. The study found that

none of the departments indicated that they train their officials on integrated service

3 Andrew Patterson and Joan Roodt (2008). “Skills demand and supply in the South African ICT sector, 1996-2005”. A

Project commissioned by the Department of Labour



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delivery or TSC-specific training through, for instance, on-the-job training or induction

programmes.

1.6.2 Economic

In the last Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) period, the country made significant strides when the economy grew rapidly at an average of over 5 percent between 2004 and

2007 – well above the 4.5 percent target (MTSF, 2009: 7). Sustaining and improving this

growth rate became one of the South African government‟s main priorities – mainly

because of the need to accelerate employment creation. The key role that the public

service has played in creating an enabling environment for economic growth has been

acknowledged by all spheres of government. Thus, the continued transformation of the

public service and the quest for improved public service capacity and service delivery has its

roots in the overall economic objectives of the country.

However, the country is experiencing major threats to its strong growth path as a result of

the effects of the global economic recession. In 2009, South Africa experienced its first

recession in seventeen years. The annual growth rate for 2009 was around 1.9 percent and

is expected to be between 1.5 percent and 1.9 percent in 2010 (BUSA; IMF World

Economic Outlook). Manufacturing has been the hardest hit and approximately 870,000 jobs

were lost by the end of 2009 bringing the number of unemployed people in South Africa to

4,16 million people.

Job losses of almost a million people and the closure or shrinkage of SMMEs means that the

tax base has reduced and government will not be able to collect tax revenues to the scale

that it could before the economic crisis. What this also means is that from a reduced tax

base, government has an even greater responsibility in terms the number of people who

have lost their jobs and will now be looking to government for assistance through the

various social grants.

Another implication for government is that even though the economy lost close to a million

jobs, statistics show that employment in the public service grew in the same period,

meaning that government‟s wage bill has also increased. The same wage bill that is financed

from the fiscus.

1.6.2.1 The public service wage bill

Salaries to civil servants have all but doubled in the last five years, soaring from R155 billion in the 2006/07 financial year to almost R259 billion in 2009/10.

At the same time, debt-servicing costs, or the interest that government is paying on its

loans, are the fastest-growing line item in the budget. They are projected to be R57,5 billion

this year but will leap to R71 billion in 2010/11 and are expected to reach to R104 billion in

2012/13.

Economists have said that the while the debt burden has grown it is still within acceptable

levels. They warned, however, that this was not sustainable in the long term.



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The have also noted that rising state debt costs are the fastest growing item in the budget

but that, under the current circumstances, increased debt was acceptable, particularly as the

government was aiming to bring the budget deficit down to 6,2 percent of GDP in 2010/11,

and 4,1 percent by 2012/13.

However, they warned that if debt levels were not carefully managed, the country could

quickly slide into a "debt trap", where funds needed for programmes such as health or

education are channelled into servicing interest payments4.

1.6.2.2 MTSF imperatives

According to the MTSF (2009: 3), current forecasts of real growth in South African GDP for

the period 2009 – 2014 put the average annual rate much lower than the average for 2004

– 2009. This will not only affect government revenue, but it will also present difficulties in

terms of borrowing from the markets to finance the government deficit. However, the

problem transcends issues of fiscal management, and poses substantial challenges for

industry and trade, employment and training, income distribution and social security. On the other hand, the country is also duty-bound to seek opportunities – in a potentially vibrant

subcontinent – that will result in a more equitable long-term growth and development

trajectory.

In this regard, it is not surprising that the MTSF is very concerned with establishing a

“stable, pro-employment macro-economic environment” (MTSF; 2009:8). Examples of

initiatives to address the spate of unemployment includes job creation will be supported

through the rollout of the second phase of the Extended Public Works Programme and the

creation of a fund managed by the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to assist

companies impacted by the recession and having to retrench employees.

Going forward and given the new challenges arising from the dramatic changes in the global

economic environment, the main focus of the current MTSF is to minimise the impact of

the economic downturn on the country‟s productive capacity as well as jobs and poverty-

reduction measures, to identify opportunities for new areas of growth and economic

participation, and progressively to set the country on a new growth and development path.

(ibid).

The MTSF points out that at the core of the critical activities that can drive faster economic

recovery and lay the basis for movement to a higher growth trajectory, ensure protection

of jobs and expansion of employment opportunities, and offer social protection are:

major infrastructure programmes with a large impact on productivity, competitiveness, local industrial development and on the quality of life.

public employment initiatives centred on public works projects and expansion of

public services such as health, education and social work.

a comprehensive revamp of the social security system.

large investment projects of the private sector, especially projects with high labour-

absorbing impact, including security of fuel supply, environment-friendly energy and

other such products and services as well as supplier industries for infrastructure

projects.

4 http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-02-18-sas-rising-wage-bill-a-cause-for-concern



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enhanced productivity across the public and private sectors underpinned by a

massive skills development programme including, in the context of the economic

crisis, training initiatives as an alternative to retrenchment.

public and private socio-economic projects with low import content, such as housing construction.

Critically, investment in quality education for all young people and in skills development

should form the bedrock of the government‟s approach. Indeed, success in reducing

poverty, in eliminating structural unemployment, in implementing a comprehensive social

security system, in building social cohesion and in reducing crime will depend to a large

extent on the progress made in growing the economy in an equitable manner, underpinned

by a growing skills base.

Given the prominence that education and skills development has in the MTSF serves as

further motivation for PSETA to get involved and play its part in the delivery of the MTSF

objectives. The objectives and activities outlined in the MTSF will require a public service

that will be able to support them in terms of the necessary policies, the facilitation of

collaboration between all social partners as well as the monitoring and evaluation of the

delivery of the MTSF objectives.

This will require a public service with the necessary skills to enable government to play its

part and perform its duties according to its responsibilities in terms of its core mandate

which is ensuring that the business of government is delivered.

1.6.2.3 The new Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP 2010)

Linked to the MTSF is the new IPAP which highlights a great need for leveraging

procurement as one of the key action plans that must be implemented by government in

the delivery of the action plan. The IPAP 2010 says that sstrategic leveraging of public

procurement will be critically important for the success of the IPAP across a range of

sectors. Currently public procurement is conducted on an „ad hoc‟ rather than a strategic

basis and does not deliver adequately on either value-for-money or key industrial policy

objectives. Some fundamental changes are required with respect to procurement legislation,

regulations and practice.

Preferential procurement regulations and legislation will be overhauled through a two-stage

process. First, the current process of amending regulations to the Preferential Procurement

Policy Framework Act (PPPFA) must be fast-tracked to give effect to the Nedlac Crisis

Response Framework5. Second, a broader review and amendment of the procurement

legislation itself will be required.

5 The Framework Agreement – which was confirmed as government policy in the President‟s State of the Nation Address of 3 June 2009 – identifies procurement of domestically produced goods and services as central to the crisis response:

“ All the social partners, including parastatals, will encourage local procurement of supplies, services and other requirements wherever possible in order to maintain and increase local output and employment levels. This applies particularly to the large procurement programmes attached to major public and private investment projects where cooperation amongst social partners can be employed to

promote local suppliers. This will also include procurement of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, clothing and textile products, food and perishables, stationary, computers, office equipment and consumables, automobiles and transport services, consulting services and printing. The review of preferential procurement legislation should be undertaken with urgency”.



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Again this highlights a priority skills development area for the public service that should be

immediately implemented if government has to deliver on this action plan in the medium

term. This means that PSETA needs to work closely with this initiative and develop

programmes that will assist public officials to understand and be able to implement the

overhauled legislation and regulations and to also be able to explain the changes to their

clients.

1.6.2.4 AsgiSA and Jipsa

The previous three democratic regimes adopted various strategies and programmes to give

impetus to the drive towards greater economic growth. In early 2005 government adopted

the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa (AsgiSA). This initiative

consisted mostly of a set of projects and other government initiatives that aimed to halve

poverty and unemployment in South Africa by 2014. AsgiSA used mainly existing structures

and institutions to attain its objectives.

The exception was a new institution, the Joint Initiative for Priority Skills Acquisition (Jipsa). This institution was led by a committee of the former Deputy President, key ministers,

business leaders, trade unionists and education and training providers or experts. Its job

was to identify urgent skills needs (especially skills needed for the successful implementation

of the AsgiSA projects) and quick and effective solutions to these skills needs. Solutions

included special training programmes, bringing back retirees or South Africans and Africans

working out of Africa, and drawing in new immigrants where necessary. It also included

mentoring and overseas placement of trainees to fast-track their development. The public

service played a central role in the implementation of both AsgiSA and Jipsa. At the same

time its own capacity building was meant to benefit from the Jipsa initiative.

It should be noted that the Jipsa initiative still continues and will be expanded under the

auspices of the newly-established HRD Council.

These solutions and initiatives have been highlighted as priorities of HRD-SA and are also

emphasized in the NSDS 3, and should be taken into account by PSETA during the

development of its strategies.

1.6.3 Social

1.6.3.1 HIV/AIDS

HIV/AIDS impacts on the public service in two major ways. The number of public sector employees infected with HIV and living with AIDS can have a negative impact on the

economy of the country, in view of the public sector being the largest employer in the

economy.

Large numbers of people depend on public servants for service delivery and as a result the

future of a large section of society is closely interlinked with the well-being of public

servants. In addition, the public service has an important role to play mitigating the impact

of HIV/AIDS within and outside of the public service (DPSA; 2002).



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The demand for new skills within the public service as public servants are affected by

HIV/AIDS, together with the need for skills to support initiatives aimed at mitigating the

effect of the disease, will impact significantly on the types of skills development priorities

that are established for the future.

Seeing the effect of this scourge in the public service, PSETA should accelerate education

efforts for public servants on the effects and impact of HIV/AIDS both on their health and

their jobs and service delivery. This should be an on-going initiative by PSETA.

1.6.4 Technology and work organisation-driven change

1.6.4.1 e-Government

Government has initiated the development and implementation of South Africa On-line, a

single gateway facilitating access to all information about and services provided by

Government. The overall objective of the Gateway is to provide access to services and

information – organised according to life events - anytime, any place. As such, the Gateway

project is strongly rooted within an e-Government strategy and within the Batho Pele

project.

Gateway is a bold initiative that will transform the nature of interaction between

government and the public as recipients of services. Through creating a mechanism through

which citizens and business can experience seamless „joined-up‟ government, the initiative

will also have a profound effect on the current structures and processes of government. It is

likely to push existing institutions towards greater economies of scale, efficiency and service

delivery improvement.

The Gateway project is primarily concerned with creating access to government

information and services, thereby reducing the current impact of geography, historical

disadvantage, language and income. It further demonstrates government‟s commitment to

fundamentally different modes of interacting and transacting with the public.

The delivery of e-Government requires specialised skills and technology that PSETA need to

research and fully understand so that programmes that are developed take into account the

technology that goes with such a programme.

1.6.4.2 Integration of services (a Single Public Service)

The integration of national, provincial and local government services, addressing critical life event requirements of citizens and businesses involves the integration of a wide range of

government services. Vertical integration refers to coherence between national, provincial

and local levels, while horizontal integration refers to the connection between government

and non-government agencies within each of these levels.

Many of the reasons for the current fragmented and unco-ordinated delivery of services

result from the way these services are designed. Services are not designed within a context

of an integrated and coherent system. Integrated service delivery however involves

organisations working together at an operational level. Integration of services is about more



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than making a few procedural changes – it is about institutional change to create a more

coherent service delivery system.

The design and development of integrated services will have fundamental implications for

the way in which public service delivery mechanisms are designed, organised, resourced and

implemented. It will have a direct impact on the kind of skills that will be required to facilitate and deliver integrated services to the public.

In this regard, the DPSA (2005) developed a Framework for Managing Joint Programmes.

This framework identifies barriers that hinder improved collaboration and successful

implementation of joint programmes. These barriers include capacity and capability

deficiencies in government departments as some of the key factors that compromise joint

programmes.

Currently, some of the programmes have created the requisite capacity (by appointing

personnel and establishing a programme office) to deliver and manage joint programmes;

however there are greater signals of a huge gap on the issue of capabilities. As a result, it is

important that both capacity and capability issues be addressed in the implementation of

joint programmes.

There is therefore a clear distinction between what can be referred to as capacity and what

is referred to as capability. Capacity is more related to issues of human resources

(personnel, budget, and infrastructure) whilst capability relates to competency, that is, the

ability to apply knowledge and skills to achieve goals.

The framework also identifies programme and project management as critical capabilities

for the implementation of joint programmes. It suggests that it is vital that this function be

strengthened to improve the overall performance of government. The implementation of

the framework for joint programmes provides an opportunity to consider the role of

project managers in the public service and to recommend measures for strengthening their

status, training and performance, including the development of competencies and a

curriculum for project managers.

The challenge noted was that officials would need to be capacitated with the right skills and

competencies (in spite of qualifications currently possessed by these officials) to assume

responsibility for performance of duties at hand. Whilst it is acknowledged that qualifications are important, the challenge here is competency levels.

What this framework identifies as the need to capacitate officials with the right skills and

competencies resonates very well with an earlier discussion in this report about the PSETA

being at the forefront and championing the development of the critical skills that are public

service officials need to achieve government‟s goals.

1.6.4.3 HR CONNECT

In 2007, the DPSA established the HR CONNECT project which was aimed at managing

the level of congruence between the competence profile of an employee and that of the

post the individual occupies. The first step in the process involved the assistance of



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individuals to state their qualifications and experience and the second step was defining job

and ultimately post profiles.

The need for such an approach and system stemmed from the need of the PSETA to meet

its legislative requirements in terms of the SAQA Act and the Skills Development Act of the

Department of Labour (DoL), as well as to ensure that the DPSA Human Resource and

Development component would be able to report on the skills base in each department

with a view to understanding the skill levels, in relation to the required posts, occupations

and job profiles6.

A skills database was seen as the mechanism necessary to facilitate human resources

reporting and to allow for ongoing updates of public sector skills at a national and provincial

level. The database was seen as the first step towards ensuring that there was accurate and

consistent information, derived through skills audits, from which departments could analyse,

evaluate, report, forecast, model and plan in advance for skills needs within their own areas

and for government in general.

1.6.4.4 Objectives of the HR CONNECT project

The overall objectives of the project were to:

centralise the management of Human Capital by means of a web-based Human

Resources Information System (HRIS) that could manage and report on the

development of Human Capital in the Public Service;

enable participating Government Departments to manage their employees‟ training plans on a centralised HRIS and generate Department specific reports such a

Workplace Skills Plans and Training Reports;

generate basic Personal Development Plans, based on individually sourced

qualification and experience data, for each employee in the identified departments;

compile job profiles for all posts in the respective Departments, linked to specific

Department organograms.

This approach was unique in that the system was developed based on the information

required, rather than the traditional method of first collecting data and then either building

a system to hold it, or force fitting information into a predefined system. HR CONNECT

was different from other skills audits and databases in that it was:

The first time Government departments have worked together on a cross-

government skills agenda;

A significant move towards a Government demand-led approach;

Strong framework for delivery in which the Government and its agencies needed to

work together;

Supported by determination underpinned by political and legal mandates to deliver

on a demanding change agenda.

6 DPSA (2006). The roll-out of the DPSA/PSETA Human Resources Management Information System (HRMIS).



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1.6.4.5 HR CONNECT project implementation approach

The project used a phased roll-out and implementation approach to collect the required

data on individual employees and their jobs and was broken down into three phases as

follows:

Table 10: HR CONNECT project implementation approach

Phase Competency Profile

Timelines Status Individual Job/Post

One

Bio data confirmed.

Formal qualifications.

Experience.

Job mapped to OFO 5th Level.

Qualification.

Professional registration.

Experience.

May 2007: Phase

1 launched

Completed

Two

Details regarding

qualifications obtained.

Professional registrations.

Skills and knowledge bases

associated with a job defined in

relation to performance levels.

Details regarding qualifications.

May 2008: Phase

2 implemented Completed

Three

Assessment of individuals to

determine proficiency levels

for specific skills and

knowledge bases

Determine proficiency levels

for skills associated with

specific posts

May 2008: Phase

2 implemented

Completed in

March 2009

except for

outstanding

departments

The project was planned to be rolled-out to all departments in May 2009 to 2012.

1.6.5 Environmental

Global climate change is possibly the greatest environmental challenge facing the world this

century. Although often referred to as „global warming‟, global climate change is more about

serious disruptions of the entire world‟s weather and climate patterns, including impacts on

rainfall, extreme weather events and sea level rise, rather than just moderate temperature

increases. The developing world faces greater challenges than the developed world, both in

terms of the impacts of climate change and the capacity to respond to it (DEAT, September

2004)7. This quote illustrates just how much the issue of climate change and sustainable

development has become so important so as to top the agenda of the international

community of nations.

The phenomenon of climate change is of major concern because of its influence in the rapid

degradation of the environment which has major economic implications. The United

Nations has spearheaded a number of initiatives that seek to counter the challenge of global

warming. South Africa has ratified these initiatives and has mandated the Department of

Environmental Affairs to develop a national climate change response strategy. The objective of this strategy is to support the policies and principles laid out in the Government White

Paper on Integrated Pollution and Waste Management, as well as other national policies

including those relating to energy, agriculture and water.

On 20 May 2010, a Green Economy Summit was held where a commitment was made that

South Africa would follow a green growth path which is resource efficient, far less carbon-

intensive and more labour absorbing. The Green Economy Summit also concluded that it

would be critical to define the skills development needs and programmes required to

achieve the job creation potential of a green growth path.

7 http://unfccc.int/files/meetings/seminar/application/pdf/sem_sup3_south_africa.pdf

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1.6.5.1 A Green Economy8

A green economy can be defined as “a system of economic activities related to the

production, distribution and consumption of goods and services that result in improved

human well being over a long term, while not exposing future generations to significant risks

and or ecological scarcity. A Green Economy is therefore a shift in the economy as a whole

towards cleaner industries and sectors with low environmental impacts compared to its

socio-economic impact” (DEA, 2010).

A green economy lends itself to the concept of a clean energy economy, which consists

primarily of four sectors:

a) renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind,);

b) green building and energy efficiency technology;

c) energy-efficient infrastructure and transportation; and

d) recycling and waste-to-energy.

Therefore a green economy is not just about the ability to produce clean energy, but also technologies that allow cleaner production processes, as well as the growing market for

products which consume less energy. In the South African context green economy refers to

growing economy activity (which leads to investment, job creation and competitiveness) in

the green industry sector.

This then leads to the concept of a green job which is an occupation that directly works

with policies, information, materials, and technologies that contribute to minimising

environmental impact and that requires specialised knowledge, skills, training or experience

in these areas.

1.6.5.2 The green economy and its implications for skills development

According to DEA, the transition into a green economy needs to be managed carefully,

ensuring that all aspirations of different stakeholders are managed and that roles and

responsibility are assigned. The availability of skills for green jobs plays a crucial role in

triggering change and facilitating just and timely interactions. There is also a necessity to

look at emerging, changing and rapidly growing industries, as well as occupations that are

completely new (emerging) and/or require new knowledge, skills and abilities

It is in this context that DEA in partnership with associated government department and

civil society, has embarked on initiatives focusing on addressing skills gaps in the

environmental sector

In 2009/10, DEA developed an Environmental Sector Skills Plan (ESSP) to review the

current status of environmental skills issues in South Africa; to identify priorities for skills

development in the environmental sector. This was the first of its kind in South Africa as no

previous comprehensive assessment of environmental skills has been done in South Africa.

The ESSP further outlines the leading role that government needs to play in driving the

development of the Green Economy and the various skills that public officials must have to

achieve this. PSETA has a major role to play in ensuring that these skills are developed at

8 Sourced from a presentation by DEA at the PSETA Skills Symposium, September 2010



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the right levels and at the right time. The skills priorities identified in the ESSP are discussed

in the Skills Demand chapter.

1.6.6 Legislative

Various pieces of legislation have been developed over the last number of years to provide the impetus and framework for the process of transforming the public service. Below, a

brief overview of the legislation is provided.

Table 11: Legislation that facilitates the transformation of the public service

Legislation Purpose

The Public Service Act, 1994 (no.

103 of 1994)

The Act is the principal piece of legislation which governs public administration

as required by the Constitution.

The Public Service Commission

Act, 1997 (no. 46 of 1997)

The Act redefines the roles and duties of the Public Service Commission. The

PSC will serve as an administrative watchdog which will assist departments by

monitoring and evaluating the human resource and work organisation policies

and practices.

The Public Service Laws

Amendment Act (no. 47 of 1997)

as amended by the Public Service

Second Amendment Act, 1997

(no. 93 of 1997)

A key feature of the Act is that it rearranges the powers that the Public Service

Commission has traditionally held between the Minister of Public Service and

Administration and executing authorities. It clearly defines their new powers and

responsibilities in the following way:

The Minister will make policy, regulations and determinations for the public service as a whole; and

Executing authorities will have powers concerning internal human

resource and work organisation policies and practices.

The Public Service Laws

Amendment Act, 1998 (no. 86 of

1998)

The Act readjusts the functions of heads of provincial administrations and the

provincial Directors-General. It also further regulates the functions and

conditions of heads of provincial departments and the conditions of service of

heads of organisational components.

The Public Service Amendment

Act, 1999 (no. 5 of 1999)

The Act regulates the handling of the appointment and other career incidents of

heads of departments in a new way.

1.6.6.1 Other legislation

The new framework must be read together with any other legislation that is applicable to

the public service, for instance the:

Labour Relations Act, 1995 (no. 66 of 1995

Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 1997 (no. 75 of 1997)

Employment Equity Act, 1998 (no. 55 of 1998) that is applicable to the public service

from 1 May 2000

Skills Development Act, 1998 (no. 97 of 1998).

1.6.6.2 Public Service Regulations

The Regulations are made by the Minister of Public Service and Administration. They

prescribe principles and measures about the way departments must manage themselves.

The Regulations are minimal, enabling departments to be innovative and responsive to

service delivery needs.



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1.6.6.3 Collective agreements

Collective agreements are reached through the bargaining process between the state as

employer and employees as represented by the various employee organisations. They

include matters of mutual interest like benefits and allowances. The agreements are binding

on departments.

1.6.6.4 White Papers

Various White Papers were developed on Human Resource Development in the public

service and some key ones are listed below:

White Paper on Public Service Training and Education (1997)

The purpose of this White Paper is to provide a framework for public service training and

education that is appropriate, adequate and accessible, and that meets the current and

future requirements of public servants, the Public Service and the public.

White Paper on Human Resources Management in the Public Service (1998) The purpose of this White Paper is to facilitate for the practice of human resource

management in the public service to become a model of excellence in which service to

society stems from commitment rather than compulsion. The management of people should

be regarded as a significant task for those who have been charged with that responsibility

and should be conducted in a professional manner.

The White Paper on Affirmative Action in the Public Service (1998)

The purpose of this White Paper is to provide a policy framework that sets out the

mandatory requirements and steps that national departments and provincial administration

should take to develop and implement their affirmative action programmes. The paper also

sketches the accountability, monitoring and reporting responsibilities of various players

within affirmative action programmes.

Government’s objectives, priority areas and outcomes It is important that whatever plans and programmes are put in place for skills development

in the public service are informed by the government‟s Election Manifesto and the MTSF

strategic objectives and the resultant priority areas which give effect to these strategic

objectives.

The following have been identified as Government‟s strategic objectives:

halve poverty and unemployment by 2014;

ensure a more equitable distribution of the benefits of economic growth and reduce inequality;

improve the nation‟s health profile and skills base and ensure universal access to

basic services;

improve the safety of citizens by reducing incidents of crime and corruption; and

build a nation free of all forms of racism, sexism, tribalism and xenophobia.

In the State-of-the-Nation Address to the first joint sitting of the fourth democratic

Parliament in 2009, President Zuma introduced his programme of action comprising of ten



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priority areas. Whilst all of these have bearing on the public service, two of the priority

areas speak directly to the need to strengthen the skills and human resource base of the

country and to build a developmental state with improved public services and stronger

democratic institutions. The foci of the developmental state include improved education and

healthcare services, and an expansion of infrastructural development and job creation with

particular benefits for marginalised rural areas.

This ten point plan presented in the State-of-the-Nation address was then further unpacked

in the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) and its accompaniment, the Medium

Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF). The MTSF guides planning and resource allocation

across all spheres of government and national and provincial government are required to

align their plans with the strategic priorities set out in the MTSF.

The contextual imperatives driving the MTSF include the prevailing global economic

recession and its local impacts and the Vision 25 which is a 15 year horizon with a set of

strategic objectives defining the kind of society South Africa should be by 2025. One of the elements that are relevant to this SSP update and sector analysis is the state‟s ability to

provide services efficiently and to give leadership to the programme of national

development.

The MTSF describes in detail how each of the ten priority areas will be achieved. Of direct

relevance to this Sector Skills Plan is the following:

Strategic Priority 4: Strengthen skills and human resource base:

A range of interventions at all levels of the educational hierarchy are considered and include

the improvement of the qualifications of Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioners

and teachers. Of greatest consequence is the statement that training and skills development

initiatives must respond to the requirements of the economy, rural development and social

integration. This will in part be achieved by putting “in place mechanisms to ensure better

co-ordination and integration of the relevant government departments and agencies

responsible for skills development, including State Owned Enterprises” (MTSF; 2009:19).

This has a direct bearing on the role of PSETA in giving effect to the objectives of the MTSF.

Strategic Priority 10: Building a developmental state, including the

improvement of public services and strengthening democratic institutions:

This priority area has several thrusts and the one with the greatest bearing on this Sector

Skills Plan and sector analysis is the improvement of the capacity and efficacy of the state.

This includes improving the development of human resources in the public service and

increasing the availability of programmes for leadership and management development by

extending the volume and take-up of high quality, practical training programmes for public

service managers.

Based on the Election Manifesto and the MTSF, a set of 12 outcomes were developed which

reflect the desired development impacts government seeks to achieve. The twelve key

outcomes are the following:

1. improved quality of basic education 2. a long and healthy life for all South Africans

3. all people in South Africa are and feel safe

4. decent employment through inclusive economic growth



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5. a skilled and capable workforce to support an inclusive growth path

6. an efficient, competitive, and responsive economic infrastructure network

7. vibrant, equitable and sustainable rural communities with food security for all

8. sustainable human settlements and improved quality of household life

9. a responsive, accountable, effective and efficient local government system

10. environmental assets and natural resources that are well protected and

continually enhanced

11. create a better South Africa and contribute to a better Africa and world

12. an efficient, effective and development oriented public service and an

empowered, fair and inclusive citizenship.

The Minister of Higher Education and Training is the co-ordinating Minister for Outcome 5

of government's Medium Term Strategic Framework, “A skilled and capable workforce to support an inclusive growth path ”, which has a particular focus on the following outputs:

Output 1: Establish a credible institutional mechanism for skills planning, which includes provision of information with regard to demand and supply of

and demand for skills as well as career guidance

Output 2: Increase access to programmes leading to intermediate and high level

learning, including raising the levels of both youth and adults to access

training as millions of them do not have enough schooling to be able to

access mid and high level skills

Output 3: Increase access to occupationally-directed programmes in needed areas and thereby expand the availability of intermediate level skills, with a

special focus on artisan skills and other mid level skills

Output 4: Increase access to high level occupationally-directed programmes in

needed areas such as engineers, health professionals, natural and physical

sciences, as well as increasing graduate output of teachers

Output 5: Research, Development and Innovation in human capital for a growing knowledge economy, with a particular focus on post-graduate degrees,

deepening industry and university partnerships, as well as increase

investment into research development and innovation, especially in

science, engineering and technology

Now all of these outputs, including the government-wide outputs, have to be located within

a range of other supporting strategies that have been developed and put in place to support

the delivery of these outputs. These strategies include, among others, the National HRD

Strategy and the revised Industrial Policy Action Plan of 2010.

The National HRD Strategy has the following commitments which were designed to also

address government‟s priorities:

overcoming the shortages in the supply of people with the priority skills needed for

the successful implementation of current strategies to achieve accelerated economic

growth;

increasing the number of appropriately skilled people to meet the demands of

current and emerging economic and social development priorities;



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ensuring improved universal access to quality basic education and schooling (up to

Grade 12);

implement skills development programmes that are purposefully aimed at equipping recipients/citizens with requisite skills to overcome related scourges of poverty and

unemployment;

ensuring that young people have access to education and training that enhances

opportunities and increases their chances of success in further vocational training

and sustainable employment;

improve the technological and innovation capability and outcomes within the public and private sectors to enhance South Africa‟s competitiveness in the global economy

and to meet its human development priorities;

ensuring that the public sector has the capability to meet the strategic priorities of

the South African Developmental State.

From these commitments, a process of the identification of priority skills that will be

needed by practitioners to assist in the achievement of these objectives, particularly in the

public service sector, can begin. PSETA has the task of identifying priority skills that are

needed in the public service, these are provided in the chapter on demand for skills.

The revised Human Resource Development Strategy 2010 to 2030 deserves a

mention as one of its eight areas of commitment is one that is of direct relevance to the SSP

update. Commitment Seven: We will ensure that the Public Sector has the

capability to meet the strategic priorities of the South African Developmental

State (HRD Strategy, 2010: 42) is comprised of two strategic priorities accompanied by

objectives and indicators. The first priority is to improve the credibility and impact of

training in the public sector by improving service-delivery and the second is to leverage the

SETAs to contribute optimally to capacity development in the public sector. Many of the

activities listed pertain to PSETA such as the performance of skills audits and improvement

of capacity for the planning and delivery of training services.

The DPSA’s Strategic Plan 2010-2014 The PSETA works very closely with the DPSA in driving skills development and capacity

building that is aimed towards improving the performance, productivity, quality and cost-

effectiveness of the public service. The DPSA is responsible for the organisation and

administration of the public service, the regulation of the conditions of employment, terms

of office, discipline, retirement and discharge of members of the public service.

In order to deliver on its mandate, the DPSA has developed a Strategic Plan that is informed

by the strategic priorities of government which are translated into the Medium-term

Strategic Framework (MTSF). The Strategic Plan is located within the context of the

government's adoption of the new outcomes-based performance approach. This approach

focuses government departments to outline clear and measurable outputs that will realise

the outcomes. The outputs are further broken into activities together with measures,

targets and timeframes. These are then translated into measurable objectives which guide

the structuring of the Strategic Plan.



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According to the Department of Public Service and Administration‟s Strategic Plan 2010 –

20149, the main dimensions underpinning how this needs to be done begins with ensuring

that the following are in place:

Capacity building mechanisms which ensure development of individual public servants to be able to do the work and remain productive;

Institutional development and support within departments which ensure that groups

of public servants function synergistically as collective delivery teams within an

empowered environment;

Governance initiatives which enhance disciplined democratic structures which

enhance public participation; and

Continuous economic growth and development opportunities

The DPSA‟s lead focus is on Outcome 12 and all other government departments are

expected to demonstrate how their core mandates will support the realisation of all the

other 11 outcomes driven by other lead departments.

The table below shows the DPSA‟s key output that has a direct bearing to the PSETA (it

should be noted that only the output that has a direct bearing on the PSETA has been

included in this table).

Table 12: Outputs, measures and activities for Outcome 12

Output Measure Indicator Activities

Effective

employment

entry into public

service and

HRD/cadre

development

Number of public

servants trained

Training

programmes linked

to skills gaps

Establish a comprehensive funding model for public

sector training linked to skills development legislation.

Set minimum levels of training per annum for public sector officials in specific competency areas.

Identify required core skills and introduce mandatory

development-oriented training.

Introduce a national integrated public sector training

system for government covering the three spheres of

government.

Streamline the government-wide institutional landscape for public sector training.

Source: The DPSA Strategic Plan 2010-2014

Sector priorities Based on the analysis of the sector outlook, some issues emerge that will require priority

action by PSETA.

The rethinking and definition of the PSETA‟s proposed niche area based on the understanding that it is responsible for the development of skills that will assist the

public service in delivering the business of government means that programmes

particularly at the supervisory, middle and senior management need to be

developed.

There have never been any skills development programmes specifically for

Legislatures and Parliamentarians and they have also highlighted this by drafting a

document outlining their skills development support and needs. It would be

imperative for PSETA to start engaging them and taking this process forward.

9 http://www.dpsa.gov.za/documents/dpsa/2010/strat%20plan%202010.pdf

http://www.dpsa.gov.za/documents/dpsa/2010/strat%20plan%202010.pdf



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The IPAP 2010 has highlighted the need for strategic leveraging of public

procurement and that these will be critically important for the success of the IPAP

across a range of sectors. In this regard the IPAP calls for some fundamental changes

with respect to procurement legislation, regulations and practice. This is another priority area for the PSETA in terms of ensuring that programmes are available and

in place for improved skills on procurement legislation, regulations and practice.

Government has outlined the twelve outcomes and all Ministers have now signed

performance agreements with the President in terms of delivery of these outcomes.

This will require that all government programmes and closely monitored and

frequently evaluated to show progress and identify challenges. Public servants are

going to require skills to be able to perform monitoring and evaluation of

government work. The development of skills development programmes on M&E has

been identified as another priority area for PSETA in the current period.

Conclusion The overall picture of the public service that can be gleaned from this chapter is a picture of

a public service that currently faces a challenge of improving service delivery to the public,

and one of the interventions that all stakeholders agree on is that of improving the skills of

public service employees and politicians who are at legislatures and parliament. However,

the public service is still faced with the problem of attracting people with the right skills, as

well as developing and improving the skills of those currently in the public service.

There are other imperatives such as delivering on government‟s socio-economic policies

such as the twelve outcomes of government, IPAP 2010 and the MTSF. All of these require

a skilled public service workforce that is properly capacitated, but as observed by the PSC

(2010A), “the human resource management function did not adequately support this

capacity building. For example, the extent to which skills development programmes led to

improved performance and enhanced service delivery is still subject to question. HR Plans lacked credible strategies to attract and retain a competent workforce. Given these

challenges, a more concerted effort would be required to optimise potential and

performance” (p. 78).

This chapter has also defined national government's role as one of policy making, with

provincial governments being responsible for the implementation of major social services.

These mandates require different sets of competencies that should be the responsibility of

the PSETA to develop and improve for public service employees. As can be seen from the

functional mandates of the different spheres, national government requires more policy

making, planning and reporting competencies whereas provincial competencies are more

around implementation, monitoring and evaluation and public finance management.

The business of government was also defined and its relation to the competencies and skills

that public servants must have to be able to perform their functions in terms of performing

the business of government unpacked. It has described how government, by its nature, has

certain functions, responsibilities and services that cannot be performed anywhere else as

they are only performed in the exclusive domain of government and they require specific

skills and competencies by employees in the public service.



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Many of the functions required to deliver the business of government fall squarely within

the definition of critical skills as defined by the Department of Labour. The SSP proposes

that the PSETA be responsible for the development and promotion of key generic skills as

listed in this chapter as well as “top-up” skills required for performance within an

occupation to fill a “skills gap” that could arise as a result of the specialised form of work

organisation that is exclusively found in the public service environment.

The chapter also highlighted other factors such as an increased focus on innovation; learning

and knowledge sharing; the need to work with others and co-operate within the different

spheres of government; as well as the need to adopt a more citizen-centred approach are

major drivers of change in the public service and underlie the skills development needs of

this sector. The impact of HIV/AIDS is also an important influence shaping the demand for

skills in the public service.

The new context for public service delivery requires a significant investment in skills development to enhance skills in managing the performance of public servants, monitoring

and evaluating activities, as well as assessing the impact of programmes, projects and

activities. These skills will be required to ensure that resources are applied more effectively

and efficiently in a manner that focuses on outcomes and results. At the same time all public

servants need to be skilled not only in their particular operational fields, but also in the

principles of Batho Pele and the practical skills necessary to translate these principles into

people-centred service delivery.



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2. DEMAND FOR SKILLS IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR

Employers in the sector

Overview of employers in the public service

The sector served by the PSETA consists mainly of national and provincial government

departments, provincial legislatures and parliament. In addition, levy-paying national and

provincial public entities such as regulatory boards, national councils and development

organisations are affiliated with PSETA.

Very few public entities affiliated with the PSETA have thus far submitted workplace skills

plans (WSPs) to the PSETA, which means there is very limited information available on their

workforces.

Size and geographic coverage

In March 2010, the public service employed 1,272,311 people, which is a 21 percent

increase from the SSP update of 2008/2009. Of this number, 393,651 (31%) - a 43 percent

increase from the previous update - were employed in national government departments.

Provincial administrations employed 878,660 (69%) of the total number of public servants,

which represents a 13 percent increase in employment in the 2008-09 SSP update.

KwaZulu-Natal employed the largest proportion (14.7%) of public servants among the

provincial administrations, followed by Gauteng (11.7%), the Eastern Cape (11.2%), and

Limpopo (9.1%) as shown in Figure 2 below.

Figure 2: National and provincial public service employment breakdown

Source: PERSAL, March 2010

National and provincial public service employment breakdown

Free State

5%

Gauteng

12%

North West

5%

Mpumalanga

6%

Northern Cape

2%

Western Cape

6%

Eastern Cape

12%

National Departments

26%

Limpopo

10%

KwaZulu Natal

16%



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Employees in the sector

Employment by population group and gender

Table 13 provides a snapshot of the total number of persons, by population group and

gender, employed in the public service in March 2010. Africans comprised 78.2 percent of

the total number of persons employed in the Public Service in 2010. The racial profile

changed slightly since the 2008-09 SSP update with Africans increasing from 75.7 percent to

78.2 percent and whites decreasing from 11.9 percent to 9.8 percent.

Table 13: Number of persons employed at national and provincial government by race and gender

Area African Coloured Indian White

Unknown Total Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male

Eastern Cape 86922 38357 6126 3311 363 367 4549 2081 142076

Free State 28202 18330 1177 632 34 36 5729 2459 56599

Gauteng 80113 38014 3033 1336 2286 1077 16198 5130 1082 148269

KwaZulu-Natal 106146 52688 2032 771 11503 6808 4892 2105 186945

Limpopo 65897 47695 82 47 85 87 1566 710 116169

Mpumalanga 42677 25193 257 90 183 179 3258 1296 73133

North West 32241 17725 583 301 132 130 3191 1170 55473

Northern Cape 6509 3994 5610 3502 58 61 1879 687 22300

Western Cape 10879 5654 30059 16231 449 289 9399 4736 77696

National 98438 189783 12117 21448 5528 12206 22217 31878 36 393651

Provincial 459586 247650 48959 26221 15093 9034 50661 20374 878660

Total 558024 437433 61076 47669 20621 21240 72878 52252 1118 1272311

% of total

employment by gender

43.9% 34.3% 4.8% 3.8% 1.6% 1.7% 5.7% 4.1%

0.1% 100% % of total

employment by

race

78.2% 8.6% 3.3% 9.8%


Gender distribution

In terms of the gender distribution of the workforce, men are more predominant within

national departments (65%) and the opposite is true at a provincial level, with men

comprising an average of 35 percent of the provincial workforce.



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Figure 3: National and provincial gender breakdown


Employees with disabilities

Table 14 indicates that limited progress has been made in increasing the employment of

people with disabilities in the public service. In August 2006 the public service employed

only 1,608 disabled people, which constituted 0.2 percent of total employment. It is thus

clear that efforts need to be made to significantly increase the employment of disabled

people in order to achieve the equity targets established in the National Skills Development

Strategy 2005-2010 (Department of Labour; 2005). Although there are variations in

performance between and within national departments and provincial administrations, the

overall performance in this regard is poor.

Table 14: Number of persons with disabilities employed in national and provincial government

departments

Provinces African Indian Coloured White

Total Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female

National 240 334 13 14 34 50 113 160 958

Provincial 573 798 18 35 77 103 132 159 1895

Eastern Cape 124 139 1 1 15 8 20 23 331

Free State 44 61 0 0 0 1 15 13 134

Gauteng 65 64 2 2 3 4 18 26 184

KwaZulu Natal 72 115 13 29 2 7 13 11 262

Limpopo 81 194 0 1 1 1 2 3 283

Mpumalanga 86 88 0 0 1 1 5 11 192

North West 67 96 0 1 4 3 15 11 197

Northern Cape 15 13 0 0 2 11 2 4 47

Western Cape 19 28 2 1 49 67 42 57 265

Total Disabled 813 1132 31 49 111 153 245 319 2853


69%

31%

62%

38%

68%

32%

67%

33%

58%

42%

63%

37%

65%

35%

63%

37%

65%

35%

35%

65%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Easter

n Cap

e

Free

Sta

te

Gau

teng

KwaZ

ulu N

atal

Limpo

po

Mpu

mala

nga

Nor

th W

est

Nor

ther

n Cap

e

Wes

tern

Cap

e

Nationa

l Dep

artm

ents

National and provincial gender breakdown

Females Males



of 128

Age distribution of public service employees

The age distribution of public servants is illustrated in Figure 4 below. As the figure

indicates, 2.4 percent of women and 2.8 percent of men employed in the public service will

reach the retirement age of 65 in the course of the current planning period.

Figure 4: Age distribution of employees in the public service


Education qualifications of public service employees10

For the public servants whose level of education is known, the majority (30.8%) have a high

school education with just fewer than 12 percent having a university degree. According to

PERSAL data, the level of education of almost half of public service employees is not known

or not specified.

Table 15: Level of education achieved by public service employees

Education achieved Number Percentage

Less than Grade 3 1592 0.2%

ABET 1 - 4 9772 1%

Grade 9 - 12 312610 30.8%

Higher/Advanced Certificate 88363 8.7%

Bachelors Degree/Honours 120009 11.8%

Masters/PhD 7936 0.8%

Education level not specified 476233 46.9%

Total 1016515 100%


10 These are qualifications analysed after all the duplicates in the PERSAL system were dropped.

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

Age distribution of employees in the public service

Female 965 23763 68461 86123 114585 120543 108552 87307 54121 19503 976

Male 307 16015 56026 65600 81397 95300 80762 54722 33028 13914 1136

10-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65 plus



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There are more males with a high school education than there are females and more

females with graduate and post graduate qualifications

Table 16: Level of education achieved by gender

Education achieved Males (%) Females (%) Unspecified (%)

Less than Grade 3 0.12% 0.18% 0.26%

ABET 1 - 4 0.72% 1.13% 1.27%

Grade 9 - 12 33.73% 28.56% 52.13%

Higher/Advanced Certificate 6.78% 10.02% 14.99%

Bachelors Degree/Honours 9.25% 13.6% 14.86%

Masters/PhD 0.72% 0.82% 1.62%

Education level not specified 48.68% 45.67% 14.86%

Total 100% 100% 100%


Nature of appointment of public service employees

Nearly 90 percent of public sector employees have permanent contracts proving the

popular saying that public service employment is the most secure form of employment.

Table 17: Nature of appointment of public service employees

Nature of appointment Number Percentage

Permanent 911648 89.68%

Temporary 98946 9.73%

Casual 499 0.05%

Part time 2693 0.26%

Relief 2387 0.23%

Other 361 0.04%

Total 1016534 100%


Analysis of data in 2011 WSP submissions This section provides a profile of the public services sector in terms of employers and

employees. The information is based on a sample of PSETA members that submitted

Workplace Skills Plans (WSPs) and Annual Training Reports (ATRs) for the 2011/12

financial year.

Race and gender by occupational categories (excluding employees

with disabilities)

Table 18: Race and Gender by occupational category (excluding disability)

Table 1: Race and gender by occupational category excluding disability.

Occupational Class

African Coloured Indian White Total

M F M F M F M F M F

Clerical and Administrative

workers

16597 24404 1888 3703 923 1515 948 2589 20356 32211

Community and Personal Service

Workers

10361 19517 900 1496 509 655 630 590 12400 22258



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Elementary Occupations

6314 6818 736 794 55 62 229 133 7334 7807

Machinery Operators and

Drivers

2675 469 311 135 15 4 68 43 3069 651

Managers 16153 17972 1968 3146 1388 2051 1824 2438 21333 25607

Professionals 20708 66843 3404 8596 2384 6409 3283 6786 29779 88634

Sales Workers 74 57 207 129 7 4 30 7 318 197

Technicians and Trade workers

3677 2671 741 868 107 82 613 328 5138 3949

Total 76559 138751 10155 18867 5388 10782 7625 12914 99727 181314

Grand Total 215310 29022 16170 20539 281041

Source: PSETA WSPs 2011



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Race and gender by occupational categories (employees with

disabilities)

Table 19: Occupational categories by age groups

Table 2: Race by occupational category, employees with disabilities.


Occupational categories by age groups

Table 20 below summarises the occupational categories by age. Analysis of this data did not

correlate with the overall age profile of employment submitted in WSPs, which suggests

data capturing errors in the WSPs submitted.

Table 19: Occupational categories by age groups

Table 3: Occupational categories by age groups.

OccupationalClass Below 35 35 - 55 55 and over Total

No % No % No % No %

Clerical and Administrative workers

17504 6.23% 30928 11.00% 4135 1.47% 52567 18.70%

Community and Personal Service Workers

15751 5.60% 17030 6.06% 1877 0.67% 34658 12.33%

Elementary Occupations 2829 1.01% 9918 3.53% 2394 0.85% 15141 5.39%

Machinery Operators and Drivers 636 0.23% 2104 0.75% 980 0.35% 3720 1.32%

Managers 5491 1.95% 35147 12.51% 6302 2.24% 46940 16.70%

Professionals 47797 17.01% 60685 21.59% 9931 3.53% 118413 42.13%

Sales Workers 217 0.08% 269 0.10% 29 0.01% 515 0.18%

Technicians and Trade workers 2806 1.00% 5316 1.89% 965 0.34% 9087 3.23%

Total 93031 33.10% 161397 57.43% 26613 9.47% 281041 100.00%


OccupationalClass African Coloured Indian White Total

Clerical and Administrative workers 287 43 19 59 408

Community and Personal Service Workers 27 5 1 9 42

Elementary Occupations 21 1 9 1 32

Machinery Operators and Drivers 4 1 0 2 7

Managers 76 9 2 34 121

Professionals 185 22 34 47 288

Sales Workers 0 2 0 0 2

Technicians and Trade workers 17 5 1 16 39

Total 617 88 66 168 939



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Planned Training for the Employed

Planned training for the employed is summarised in Table 21 below. The most notable

feature is the extremely high level of non-unit standard based training, and other training.

However, it is also important to note the dramatic rise in bursaries and internships from the

previous year.

Table 21: Planned training for the employed by program type

Planned training of the employed by NQF level Planned training for the employed by NQF level is given in Table 22 below. Table 22: Planned training for the employed by program type

5279498 2498

136272

24254

71790

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

160000

Bursary Internship Learnership Non Unit Standard

Based

Other USBSP

Fre

qu

en

cy (

n )

Learning Program

Planned training EmployedPSETA 2011

98242746 3078

40346 41350

31006

81895050

490 1188 43

97281

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

Below Level 1

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5 Level 6 Level 7 Level 8 Level 9 Level 10

Other

Fre

qu

en

cy (

n )

NQF Level

Planned training EmployedPSETA 2011



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Beneficiaries completing training by NQF level Beneficiaries completing training by NQF level is given in Table 23. This supports the

analysis that the bulk of training is unaccredited.

Table 23: Beneficiaries completing training in 2011

Recruitment trends in the public service Beneficiaries completing training is given in Table 24 below.

Table 24: Beneficiaries completing training in 2011 by program type

4264715 885 1550

83794928

2864493 72 587

63370

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

70000

Below Level 1

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5 Level 6 Level 7 Level 8 Level 9 Other

Fre

qu

en

cy (

n )

NQFLevelBandDesc

BENEFICIARY WHO COMPLETED TRAININGPSETA 2011



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Completion rates of enrolled learners Completion rates of enrolled learners by government departments is given in Table 25

below. There are several anomalies in this data. For example, in some cases the number of

completions exceeds those enrolled. This is probably a consequence of learners enrolling in

one year and completing in another. However, in other cases there are learners enrolled

where no budget is specified for the training. The aggregate completion rate is exceedingly

low, and improving completions may be the best route for improving return on investment

in training over the coming years.

Table 25: Completion rates of enrolled learners

DEPT IN THE PRESIDENCY . 23

DEPT OF BASIC EDUCATION . .

DEPT OF ENERGY 112 285 39%

DEPT OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING . 2

DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS 97 126 77%

DEPT OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS 629 652 96%

DEPT OF MINERALS RESOURCES 198 288 69%

DEPT OF PUBLIC ENTEPRISES 217 24 904% GOVERNMENT COMMUNCATION AND INFORMATION SYSTEM(GCIS) . . DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS 10 .

DEPT OF HEALTH . 28499 DEPT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS 253 602 42%

79 0%

DEPT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT . .

DEPT OF TRANSPORT 707 707 100%

DEPT OF EDUCATION 470 3314 14%

DEPT OF AGRICULTURE . 2

COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL 168 168 100%

932 77 322

48614

24878

13284

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

Bursary Internship Learnership Non Unit Standard Based

Other USBSP

Fre

qu

en

cy (

n )

Learning Area

BENEFICIARY WHO COMPLETED TRAININGPSETA 2011



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AFFAIRS

DEPT OF POLICE,ROADS AND TRANSPORT 7 72 10%

DEPT OF SPORT,ARTS,CULTURE AND RECREATION 35 63 56%

DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT 34 327 10%

DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING 9 64 14%

DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT . .

DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM 304 227 134%

DEPT OF PUBLIC WORKS 43 575 7% DEPT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND TRADISTIONAL AFFAIRS 9 639 1%

DEPT OF AGRICULTURE 729 . DEPT OF CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS 4 301 1% DEPT OF AGRICULTURE,CONSERVATION, ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT . .

DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM 123 124 99%

DEPT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 8882 8882 100%

DEPT OF EDUCATION 10656 11110 96% DEPT OF CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE,HUMAN SETTLEMENT AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS 126 126 100%

DEPT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 187 220 85%

DEPT. OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS 311 318 98% Dept of Economic Development, Tourism and Environment affairs 90 93 97%

Gauteng 391 387 101%

DEPT OF HEALTH 314 427 74%

DEPT OF TOURISM 47 128 37%

North West Legislature . . DEPT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS 64 73 88%

dept of human settlement 357 357 100% National Department of Agriculture, Fishery & Forestry 345 1282 27%

DEPT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT NW . 752

dept of social development Limpopo 652 1019 64%

Dept of Social Development KZN . 1490

CIPRO 640 670 96%

SAMAF . 76

NATIONAL LIBRARY SA 45 45 100%

Dept of education KZN . .

Department of Social Development 74 751 10%

The Office of the Premier (Northern Cape) 123 125 98%

The Gauteng Partnership Fund 34 63 54%

The Housing Development Agency 22 26 85%

Office of the Public Protector 611 611 100%

DEPT OF PUBLIC SAFETY 17 469 4%

DEPT OF TREASURY 60 65 92%

DEPT OF HEALTH KZN 3502 5152 68%



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STATISTICS SOUTH AFRICA 82 2378 3%

DEPT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND LIASON 36 .

DEPT OF WATER AFFAIRS 2605 .

DEPT OF PUBLIC WORKS 744 810 92%

DEPT OF TRANSPORT,SAFETY AND LIASON . .

DEPT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND HOUSING 1466 322 455% DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT,ENVIRONMENT AND TOURISM 333 430 77% DEPT OF ENVIRONMENT AFFAIRS AND NATURE CONSERVATION 100 100 100%

DEPT OF TRANSPORT 385 409 94% DEPT OF AGRICULTURE,ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT 1027 567 181%

INDEPENDENT COMPLAIN DIRECTORATE 166 161 103%

DEPT OF PUBLIC WORKS,ROADS AND TRANSPORT 8 265 3%

DEPT OF SPORT AND RECREATION 1539 1540 100%

Actophambili Roads Pty Ltd . . DEPT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT,ENVIRONMENT AND TOURISM 4 45 9%

DEPT OF SPORT, ART AND CULTURE . .


PREMIER 579 .

SPORT AND RECREATION SOUTH AFRICA 43 43 100%

DEPT OFCULTURE,SPORT AND RECREATION 118 183 64%

DEPT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 405 2082 19% PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT ACADEMY 142 142 100%

DEPT OF EDUCATION 4820 5166 93%

DEPT OF PUBLIC SERVICE AND ADMINISTRATION . .

DEPT OF ARTS AND CULTURE 424 465 91%

DEPT OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 8910 7885 113%

DEPT OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS . .

PREMIER 5 239 2%

DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT 13 59 22%

DEPT OF SPORT, ART AND CULTURE 250 340 74%

DEPT OF FINANCE . 323

PREMIER 54 191 28% DEPT OF AGRICULTURE,RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND ADMINISTRATION . .

DEPT OF FINANCE 85 93 91%

DEPT OF PUBLIC WORKS,ROADS AND TRANSPORT 555 664 84%

DEPT OF COMMUNITY SAFETY AND LIASON 66 79 84%

PREMIER . .

DEPT OF SPORT,RECREATION,ARTS AND CULTURE 406 406 100%

DEPT OF ROADS AND PUBLIC TRANSPORT 665 196 339%

DEPT OF TRANSPORT 1413 158 894% DEPT OF ENVIRONMENT AFFAIRS AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING 22 .

OFFICE OF PREMIER . .



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DEPT OF HUMAN SETTLEMENT 80 80 100%

DEPT OF COMMUNITY SAFETY 785 843 93%

DEPT OF HOUSING . 555


DEPT OF LABOUR 421 422 100%

OFFICE OF PREMIER . .

DEPT OF SPORT,ARTS,CULTURE AND RECREATION 43 .

DEPT OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 429 415 103%

Office of the Public Service Commission 272 296 92%

PREMIER 46 82 56%

DEPT OF COMMUNITY SAFETY, SECURITYAND LIASON 67 146 46% DEPT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND COOPERATION . 1064

DEPT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 228 226 101%

DEPT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS AND SPORT 76

DEPT OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES PENSION FUND 3149 3283 96%

DEPT OF ART AND CULTURE 440 440 100%

DEPT OF COMMUNICATION 254 273 93%

DEPT OF HEALTH 7325 3448 212%

DEPT OF ROADS AND PUBLIC TRANSPORT 47 1118 4% DEPT OF COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS . .

Limpopo . 92


DEPT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND REFORM 566 2510 23%

Department of Health and Social Services 14369 9352 154%

Recruitment trends in the public service The following graphs show a picture of past and current trends in annual employment in the

public service. These brief descriptions provide some insights into the future trends of

employment in the sector. In terms of gender (Figure 5), there has not been a big difference

between the number of males and females employed each year until the last decade when

females have significantly been employed in the public service much more than males. In

fact, while the number of additional males employed has been decreasing in the last two or

three years, that of females has been on the increase. This could be due to the expansion of

health and education sector employment such as teachers and nurses where females

dominate.



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Figure 5: Recruitment trends by gender


Also in the last decade, the significant increase in the employment of the black South

Africans could be due to adherence to the equity labour laws in the public sector in general

and probably the public service in particular. While there are some increases in recent years

in the employment of Whites and Coloured people, and that of Asians has remained

relatively the same over the years (see Figure 6).

Figure 6: Recruitment trends by race


Figure 7 reveals interesting relationships between the recruitment of permanent and

temporary personnel. Temporary employment includes fixed contracts and outsourcing.

Clearly the two have inverse relationships. Perhaps a more significant phenomenon here is

the increasing use of temporary employment in the sector in the last four years. Otherwise

all the other forms of employment have been the same over the years.

Recruitment trends by gender

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African Asian Coloured White



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Figure 7: Recruitment trends by type of employment


Figure 8 presents various levels of qualifications of employees over the years. This is not

necessarily the level of qualification at the time of employment, but it gives a picture of

dominant qualification levels at different times. For many years the public service was

dominated by employees who joined and remained in the sector with various in-house

courses. That trend has seized in the last decade. It seems the sector is now increasingly

employing people with bachelors and masters degrees or advanced certificates. Another

implication of this recent trend is a drastic fall in the employment of matric certificate

holders as shown in the figure. This and other trends described above give an indication of

the nature of skills the public service will be using in the future.

Figure 8: Recruitment trends by qualifications


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Challenges in quantifying skills needs in the public service Before attempting to identify and quantify skills needs in the public service, some

observations made by Paterson (2008) are highlighted to provide some perspective on the

inherent challenges in attempting such an exercise in the context of the current South

African public service.

He notes the complexity of government‟s institutional domain which are that government

formations, by their nature, undertake a diverse array of functions and provide a wide range

of services – administrative, financial, security, health and infrastructure to name a few – all

of which have unique occupational structures. Multiple job requirements, work conditions

and skills requirements are present in the public service labour market which is segmented

on a service, sectoral and an occupational basis. Most importantly, Paterson highlights the

point that analysis of the public sector training domain is limited by the quality of data

available and he calls for improved data collection and data systems in the sector.

However, what is relevant for this report is his observation that skills needs in the public

service are shaped by line function units of management and administration which must fulfil

their mandates. This brings us back to the earlier discussion on what functions of the public

service is PSETA responsible for and what are the skills needed by public servants to fulfil

their mandates.

As discussed earlier, the mandate of the PSETA is to facilitate skills development on skills

that will enable public servants to effectively and efficiently conduct the Business of

Government (what was previously referred to as transversal skills). Although such skills are

needed by all public servants, they are primarily aimed at non-production workers.

Production workers, in this context, mean public servants in occupations such as those in

education, health services and public security services as examples, and which then would

fall in the ambit of line function SETAs.

Bearing this in mind, the following sections discuss skills needed as well as provide a list of

scarce skills in the public service.

Skills needed in the public service A point was made earlier that a focus area for PSETA would be to develop programmes

aimed at supervisory levels and middle management, basically at the leadership levels

because what makes employees perform is the exercise of leadership from the top down

and the ability of departmental leaders at all levels to instil fundamental philosophical

principles of responsible and ethical behaviour, efforts to communicate objectives and to

promote an understanding of the department‟s role and purpose among all employees.

This section identifies the skills needed by both senior and middle managers in the public

service to enable them to lead and better manage and deliver in their various areas of

responsibility.



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Skills demand based on the competency approach to managing

performance

According to the Public Service Regulations (2001), competence is defined as “… the blend

of knowledge, skills behaviour and attitude that a person can apply in the work

environment, which indicates a person‟s ability to meet the requirements of a specific post.”

Competency-based management (CBM) is the application of a set of competencies to the

management of human resources so as to reach a level of performance that contributes

efficiently and effectively to the achievement of results in the public service. It includes

selection, resourcing, training, development, performance management and human resource

planning activities. CBM is a systemic approach to human resource management. It is a

“system” because it is an integrated and consistent approach to managing employees over

the long term, using the common set of competencies that are linked to business strategies

and results. The DPSA has led the development of two specific sets of competency

frameworks: the Senior Management Service Competency Framework and the Middle

Management (MM) Competency Framework.

The Senior Management Service (SMS) Competency Framework comprises 11

competencies:

Table 20: The senior management service competency framework

Senior Management Service Competency Framework

Strategic Capability and Leadership Must be able to provide a vision, set the direction for the organisation and inspire

others in order to deliver on the organisational mandate.

Programme and Project

Management

Must be able to plan, manage, monitor and evaluate specific activities in order to

deliver the desired outputs.

Financial Management

Must be able to compile and manage budgets, control cash flow, institute risk

management and administer tender procurement processes in accordance with

generally recognised financial practices in order to ensure achievement of strategic

organisational objectives.

Change Management

Must be able to initiate and support organisational transformation and change in

order to successfully implement new initiatives and deliver on service delivery

commitments.

Knowledge Management Must be able to promote the generation and sharing of knowledge and learning in

order to enhance the collective knowledge of the organisation.

Service Delivery Innovation

Must be able to explore and implement new ways of delivering services that

contribute to the improvement of organisational processes in order to achieve

organisational goals.

Problem Solving and Analysis Must be able to systematically identify, analyse and resolve existing and anticipated

problems in order to reach optimum solutions in a timely manner.

People Management and

Empowerment

Must be able to manage and encourage people, optimise their outputs and effectively

manage relationships in order to achieve organisational goals.

Client Orientation and Customer

Focus

Must be willing and able to deliver services effectively and efficiently in order to put

the spirit of customer service (Batho Pele) into practice.

Communication

Must be able to exchange information and ideas in a clear and concise manner

appropriate for the audience, in order to explain, persuade, convince and influence

others to achieve the desired outcomes.

Honesty and Integrity Must be able to display and build the highest standards of ethical and moral conduct

in order to promote confidence and trust in the Public Service.

The Middle Management Service (MMS) Competency Framework comprises the

following competencies:



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Table 21: The middle management service competency framework

Middle Management Competency Framework

Feeder Competencies Generic Competencies

Concern for others Applied strategic thinking

Creative thinking Applied technology

Customer service orientation Communication and information management

Decision making Continuous improvement

Diversity citizenship Customer focus and responsiveness

Organisational communication effectiveness Developing others

Problem analysis Diversity management

Self-management Impact and influence

Team membership Managing interpersonal conflict and resolving problems

Technical proficiency

Networking and building bonds

Planning and organising

Problem solving and decision making

Project management

Team leadership

Budget and financial management

What is immediately observable from these frameworks is their similarity and alignment to the core public service competencies and their skills dimensions as discussed in Chapter 1

of this report. This again highlights the need for programmes to be developed and

implemented to speak to these needs. It also shows the need for PSETA and PALAMA to

work closely together in ensuring that this happens as a matter of urgency.

Lastly, these needs also illustrate how competencies for the senior and middle management

skills categories will become a major driver of content for future training programmes since

training will need to be aligned to the established competencies across the public service,

something which PSETA and PALAMA need to take cognisance of in their planning.

Skills demand based on the changing business environment of the

public service

As indicated in Chapter 1, there are a number of changes in the operating environment of

the public service that are driving the need for skills. These changes are related to the way

the public service is organised and include an increased focus on innovation; learning and

knowledge sharing; the need to work with others and co-operate within the different

spheres of government; as well as the need to adopt a more people-centred approach. The

role of e-Government and an increased emphasis on the delivery of integrated services will

also impact significantly on the skills requirements of the future. Furthermore, South Africa

is increasingly becoming an important player globally. For example, the country is often

required to intervene on the African continent to help other countries improve their local

governance and public administration. Notable examples are the Democratic Republic of

the Congo and Burundi.

The skills development priorities resulting from these changes include the following:

The use of technology Must able to assess, identify and use technologies in the workplace to enhance

productivity, efficiency and effectiveness.

Organisational development

Must have an understanding of the organisational development process and should

be able to conduct organisational diagnostics, participate in strategic planning, and

design organisational development strategies.

Working with others

Must be able to develop contacts and build and maintain a network of professional

relations in order to work cooperatively with other units, departments or external

organisations.



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International relations Must know important continental and international institutions and their roles and

responsibilities.

Managing information Must be able to collect data and information, as well as analyse and translate

information into knowledge for decision making and planning.

Monitoring, evaluation and impact

assessment

Must be able to monitor performance, evaluate progress and conduct impact

assessments on the outcomes and results achieved.

Skills needed by Parliamentarians and Provincial Legislatures

Parliamentarians and their support staff

Parliament has developed a document detailing the training needs of both members of

Parliament and their support staff. The training needs identified in the document are listed

in this section.

The document states that training should take place based on the Constitution, rules and

relevant practices in Parliament as well as the public representative role of members to

conduct oversight and pass legislation. Training should be split in terms of the oversight

mandates and making laws. The personal development of members should be dealt with

internally in accordance with the individual member‟s interests.

Other areas of training include formal academic programmes, as well as informal training

programmes such as seminars and conferences. Members' training should incorporate the

following core competencies:

Affirming the understanding of the Constitution

Affirming the understanding of all statutes and laws

Procedural training

Speed reading

Computer literacy

Use and application of the Best Practice Guide

Use and application of the Oversight and Accountability Model

Budget analysis

Speech writing

Public speaking and debating skills

Policy analysis and engagement

General knowledge of current news and historical issues (domestic and global)

Methods of work

Standard operating procedures

The separation of powers doctrine

Legislative processes

Rules of Parliament

Protocol skills and ethics

Commitment to work ethic and obligations

Skills on developing petitions to assist the public

Conforming to ethical standards expected from citizens.

Support staff to committees should be trained and capacitated on the following:



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The Constitution and the law making process;

Areas of specialisation;

Reporting and minute-taking skills;

General proficiency of language use;

Communication skills;

Good behavioural skills;

General discipline;

Parliamentary protocol, skills and basic ethical standards.

What is interesting to see is that the training needs identified by Parliament itself are also

mostly in the critical skills category, similar to that of the public service which confirms the

assertion of this report that the PSETA‟s niche will be the development of specific critical

skills and competencies that are mostly required by the public service as well as members of

parliament and provincial legislatures.

Provincial legislatures

Similar to Parliamentarians, provincial legislatures (through Legislative Sector South Africa),

have also developed a document detailing key training interventions for legislatures and

their support staff. The identified interventions are as follows:

Core business of legislatures

a. Oversight

1. Budget analysis

2. Monitoring & evaluation (resolutions tracking system, tool)

3. Understanding of oversight tools, mechanisms & content analysis

4. Basic information and understanding of work/content of Portfolio Committees.

b. Public participation

1. Public participation course (strategic, approach, theoretical basis)

2. IAP2 Certificate in Public participation (5 days)

a. Course 1 – Planning for effective public participation

b. Course 2 – Effective communication for public participation

c. Course 3 – Techniques for effective public participation 3. IAP2 Public Participation for Decision-makers course (1 day)

4. Facilitation, co-ordination and curriculum development for public education

(Constituency training)

c. Lawmaking

1. Table/Procedural training

2. Interpretation and analysis of Money Bills and Reports (Money Bills Amendment)

3. Legislative review/policy analysis (lawyers, researchers)

4. Legislative drafting & interpretation of process (legal, basic for all)



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Management/Governance

1. Parliamentary Administration & Management course (Secretaries, Executive

Directors, Senior Management)

2. Strategic planning & management

3. Contract management (Managing consultants)

4. Performance planning and management, Return on Investment (measurement tools)

5. Intergovernmental Relations/Co-operative Governance

6. Corporate governance (ethics & professionalism)

7. Finance for non-financial managers

8. Stakeholder relations management and development

9. Change management

10. Management development programme (middle and emerging managers)

General

1. Business and report writing

2. Protocol (International Protocol Consultants) 3. Diversity management

4. Supply Chain Management (basic understanding) and specific institutional policy and

procedures

5. Understanding of the legislative business, (also role of Parliament, Legislatures and

how they are linked) – reorientation of all staff in legislative (internal)/Palama (key

Committees – decision-making)

Support services

a. Human Resources

1. Human Resource strategic planning and management (Talent management/human

capital development)

2. Curriculum content development

3. Job profiling (descriptions) and basic understanding of job grading

4. Commissioners course (re: representing institution at CCMA)

b. Finance

1. Performance auditing (understanding & satisfying requirements)

2. FMPLA implementation & requirements – implications, financial regulations

3. Asset management

4. ERP system – Oracle (also HR)

5. Risk management (fraud prevention/awareness)

c. Communication/Public Relations, Languages & Hansard

1. Web content development & management

2. Hansard training (linked to Recording, transcribing, editing, interpretation)

d. Knowledge management and ICT (Research, Information

Management, Libraries, ICT)

1. Knowledge management (records, data, intellectual property)



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2. Qualitative data analysis research

3. ERP system update (staying abreast) – conference/seminar (Oracle Openworld, SAP,

etc)

4. ICT fraud prevention

5. Information retrieval

e. Security & Facilities

1. Security management & vetting (+ occupational health & safety act implementation)

Cross cutting skills needs As discussed in Chapter 1, the issue of proper management of our environment has topped

the agenda of both developed and developing countries. South Africa has also developed

policies and legislation aimed at ensuring that the country‟s environment is protected and

that the shift towards a green economy is well-managed and speedily facilitated. This

requires government to play a leading role. In order for government to achieve this, a range

of specialised skills will be needed to be in place.

The Environmental Sector Skills Plan (ESSP) describes skills needed in the environmental

sector as critical cross cutting skills and that currently the public sector has an estimated

shortage of over 800 environment-related scientists and 1,500 environment-related

technical skills.

Types of cross cutting skills needed

The ESSP states that for government to be able to continue ensuring South Africans with

the healthy environments enshrined in the Constitution, and providing services like

affordable and reliable energy provision, waste removal, pollution control and affordable

clean water, a concerted effort must be made to strengthen the skills base for

environmental service delivery, particularly at provincial and local government level.

Environmental practitioners and conservation managers need a broad range of (new) inter-

disciplinary and emerging skills (including resource economics; modelling and forecasting; as

well as „mainstreaming‟ environment into development; stakeholder engagement and

advocacy), which requires sophisticated and sector specific skills planning.

The following skills needs associated with environmental service delivery have been

identified:

Waste management – There is a need to build capacity across all spheres of government

for waste avoidance approaches. Remediation skills also need to be extended. Public

education and participation in local waste avoidance, re-use, recycling and composting

programmes is needed.

Air quality assurance - There is an urgent need to train air quality specialists and air

pollution control officers. Municipal and provincial officials need to be trained in

atmospheric emission avoidance, licensing, compliance monitoring and enforcement.



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Pollution incident management – Skills for pollution incident management and for

emergency services are required across national, provincial and local government.

Environmental impact management – Skills are required in mandated agencies to

ensure a greater consistency in quality of authorizations through the EIA process. This

includes skills for compliance monitoring, the training of administrators in regulations and

applications of administrative systems, and report writing skills.

Conservation - New training programmes are needed to accommodate type 1, 2 and 3

conservation activities – within statutory areas, less-formal protected areas and informal

landowner conservation activities. Capacity is needed for spatial biodiversity planning in

local government and at provincial level, and compliance monitoring skills need to be

developed.

Marine and coastal management - Research capacity for monitoring fish stocks is

needed, as are compliance skills and skills for adopting an ecosystem approach to marine, coastal and estuarine management. More and more skilled Fisheries Control Officers are

needed, and so are additional technical and enforcement skills, as well as community-based

monitoring skills.

Enforcement and compliance training - There are severe technical shortages for

carrying out monitoring and enforcement activities. Little capacity is being built for

voluntary compliance. The DEA are developing Environmental Management Inspection

Courses, but there is a great need to extend the training of EMIs within a sustainable system

of skills funding and provisioning is needed.

Replacement demand The analysis of labour turnover in the public service was conducted in 2008 and discussed in

the updated PSETA SSP of 2008/09. The findings of this analysis suggest that the total

replacement demand in the sector can be expected to be in the region of 10% per year.

Replacement demand is a function of retirement of employees, deaths, resignations and

dismissals.

Replacement demand differs for the different occupational categories and for the purpose of

estimating replacement demand for the period 2008/2009, the actual rates of replacement

observed in the Public Service in the year preceding the 2008/2009 SSP update were used

(i.e. July 2006 to June 2007).

The estimates of the number of positions in each occupational category that need to be

filled in 2008/2009 can be seen in Table 23. According to these estimates, the public service

would have to employ more than 107,000 new workers per year. Most of these

appointments would stem from the need to replace people who have left the sector.

Table 22: Estimates of positions that needed to be filled in the period 2008/2009

Occupational category

Current

employment

(2007)

New

demand

Replacement demand Total

positions to

be filled % of

employees N

Senior officials and managers 6167 31 9.6% 591 622

Professionals 437180 2186 10.6% 46156 48342



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Current

employment

(2007)

New

demand

Replacement demand Total

positions to

be filled % of

employees N

Technicians and associated professionals 111847 559 11.1% 12377 12936

Clerks 154975 775 13.0% 20104 20879

Service and sales workers 186434 932 7.1% 13298 14230

Craft and related trades workers 9574 48 3.9% 374 422

Plant and machine operators 9854 49 3.4% 339 388

Elementary workers 135797 679 6.7% 9032 9711

Total 1051828 5259 9.7% 102271 107530

PSETA SSP Update 2008/2009

Conclusion As observed by the PSC (2010A), a co-ordinated and integrated service delivery requires

particular sets of skills among public servants, including the ability and willingness to think and work beyond functional silos. The nature of the identified skills needs in the public

service confirms this observation. The list of priority skills needed to achieve this includes

planning skills, management and economic sciences, IT skills and cross-sectoral skills such as

environmental management skills.

Replacement demand in the public service is relatively high and approximately 10% of the

workforce can be expected to leave the sector and will therefore need to be replaced every

year. This includes senior and middle management positions. Management training and

training in the skills required by the business of government (transversal skills) required by

the changing operating environment of the public service thus remains a priority in the

sector.

The need to address equity and representation remains an important factor that will drive

employment demand in the short and medium term. The DPSA has placed particular

emphasis on ensuring an increase in the number of women in the public service over the

next few years – particularly in management positions. Employing people with disabilities

also remains an important priority of government and will be an important driver of

employment demand.

Moreover, the demand for black and especially African managers is more acute as a result

of the pressures created by equity legislation and the increasing competition for

management skills with the private sector.



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3. SUPPLY OF SKILLS TO THE PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR

Introduction To fully understand the supply of skills to the labour market, a number of factors must be

considered and investigated in order to establish a complete picture of the formation and

movement of skills. Some of these issues are;

the size of the labour force (persons categorised as 'working' (or employed) and categorised as 'seeking or available for work' (or unemployed) constitute the labour

force), which determines the number who are ready and willing to work

the amount of training and length of time it takes to acquire the skills to do the job

expectations of finding a job

labour mobility (or the willingness to move to where the job is)

social and cultural factors (for example, attitudes about gender and age)

quality of life factors in the community where the job is located, etc.

These are but a few of the factors that should be considered in relation to the supply of

skills. However, key factors affecting the supply of labour to a particular occupation is

influenced by a range of monetary and non-monetary considerations which include:

The real wage rate on offer in the industry itself – higher wages raise the prospect of

increased factor rewards and should boost the number of people willing and able to work.

Overtime: Opportunities to boost earnings come through overtime payments,

productivity-related pay schemes, and share option schemes and financial discounts for

employees in a certain job. (Note: These factors mentioned here is very insignificant in the

public sector. However, issues such as the Occupational Specific Dispensation [OSD] may

have some influence on this factor)

Substitute occupations: The real wage rate on offer in competing jobs is another factor

because this affects the wage and earnings differential that exists between two or more

occupations. So for example an increase in the relative earnings available to trained

teachers/educators and nurses in the public service may cause some people to switch their

jobs.

Barriers to entry: Artificial limits to an industry‟s labour supply (e.g. through the

introduction of minimum entry requirements or other legal barriers to entry) can restrict

labour supply and force average pay and salary levels higher – this is particularly the case in professions such as legal services and medicine where there are strict “entry criteria” to the

professions. Indeed these labour market barriers are partly designed to keep pay levels high

as well as being methods of maintaining the quality of people entering these professions. For

example:

The length of time it takes to qualify as a medical doctor restricts the labour supply and keeps

salaries relatively high.

The PSETA‟s mandate excludes the issues that influence salaries and wages within the

sector and therefore less emphasis will be placed on those in this chapter. Also, more

pertinently, the “Supply of Skills” for the public service sector will be dealt with in the

context of the formation and movement of skills to undertake ‘The Business of

Government.’ In other words:



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1. What is the current capacity of the public and private sector Education, Training and

Development (ETD) system to deliver the required skills to execute the Business of

Government?, namely;

a. The current institutional capacity, i.e. (# of private and public accredited

training providers) that is in place to train the required skills?

b. How many qualifications and learning programmes/courses are registered

and available that will ensure the effective formation of the required skills?

2. How many people are enrolling (entering) training/learning, and how many are

successfully exiting the ETD system in order to either become employed in the

pubic service sector, or enhance their skills to improve the execution of the Business

of Government.

For the purposes of the sector skills plan, this chapter will seek to determine what is

happening in terms of skills development initiatives within the sector and the extent of the

supply pipeline of education and training throughput.

In order to do this, a closer look at the supply and throughput of skills for new entrants to

the labour market and existing employees is considered, namely, the Public Education and

Training System, including the General Education and Training (GET), the Further Education

and Training (FET), and the Higher Education and Training (HET) sub-systems, and the

Private Education, Training and Development system, including the ETD Providers and

Practitioners, and the availability of appropriate Learning Programmes and Materials. Here,

an analysis is conducted on data from the Department of Education, as well as skills

development and training data and information obtained from PSETA.

PSETA provider accreditation PSETA has accredited a number of training providers across the country to deliver on the

training needs in the sector. These include FET colleges, provincial academies, state

academies and private providers. Table 24 shows the total active PSETA accredited

providers per province.

Table 23: Total active PSETA accredited providers per province

Province Provincial

Academies

State

Academies FET Colleges

Private

Providers

Total per

Province

Eastern Cape 0 0 0 2 2

Free State 0 0 0 1 1

Gauteng 0 4 0 14 18

KwaZulu Natal 1 0 0 1 2

Limpopo 0 0 0 1 1

Mpumalanga 0 0 1 0 1

North West 0 0 0 1 1

Northern Cape 0 0 0 0 0

Western Cape 1 0 0 0 1

Total 2 4 1 20 27

The number of PSETA-accredited providers is a cause for concern and will require greater

effort if the sector priorities identified earlier in this report are to be achieved.



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PSETA registered qualifications and unit standards/skills programmes

Table 24: PSETA registered qualifications and unit standards/skills programmes Full qualification Constituency

Diploma in Diplomacy Department of International Relations and Co-operation

National Certificate in Mission Administration (NQF Level 5) Department of International Relations and Co-operation

Advanced Certificate in Mission Administration (NQF Level 6) Department of International Relations and Co-operation

National Certificate in Public Administration (NQF Level 3)

Limpopo: Department of Roads and Transport

Department of Social Development Department of Minerals and Energy

National Certificate in Public Administration (NQF Level 3) Department of Police

Further Education and Training Certificate (FETC) in Public Administration (NQF Level 4)

Department of Police

Unit standards/Skills programmes Constituency

Financial Management

Supply Chain Management

Supervisor Courses

Project Management in the Public Service

Various national and provincial public service departments and state entities including the Development Bank of Southern Africa

(DBSA)

Gender mainstreaming Various national and provincial public service department through PALAMA

Anti-corruption

Department of Trade and Industry

Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs

Department of International and Co-operation

Financial management Free State Department of Health

Free State Department of Education

Manage and apply protocol and etiquette in a diplomatic context PALAMA, Department of Defence and Gauteng office of the

Premier

Customer care in the public service Development Bank of Southern Africa

Team building and supervisory skills programme Department of International Relations and Co-operation

Nine qualifications were added to the PSETA quality assurance scope in the financial year

2009/10.

Table 25: Qualifications registered in 2009-10 Qual ID Title Credits NQF Level

57824 Further Education and Training Certificate in Public Administration 146 Level 4

58346 Further Education and Training Certificate in Public Administration Management (Learning Programme ID 57712)

150 Level 4

66869 National Certificate in Home Affairs Services 120 Level 5

57804 National Certificate in Public Administration 157 Level 3

57805 National Certificate in Public Sector Employment and Skills development Practices 160 Level 5

50585 National Certificate in Public Service Communication 129 Level 6

50583 National Certificate in Public Service Communication 120 Level 5

57827 National Diploma in Public Administration 260 Level 7

57897 National Diploma in Public Administration (Learning Programme ID 64760) 240 Level 6

A total of 80 unit standards were also registered and added to PSETA‟s quality assurance

scope.

What is encouraging is that the courses that are being registered by PSETA are in line with

the competencies and skills dimensions that are required by the business of government.

Learning Programmes As at 31 March 2010, PSETA had met and exceeded its NSDS targets for enrolling workers

in learnerships and workers completing learnerships with 3,152 against 2,000 and 2,812

against 1,000 respectively.



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Table 26: Performance against NSDS II targets at March 2010 Success indicator Entries Completions

Target Achievement Target Achievement

2.7 ABET 2500 1163 1000 105

2.8 Workers 2000 3152 1000 2812

4.1 Workplace experience 1500 247 1030 146

4.2 Experiential learning 100 0 75 0

Source: PSETA Annual Report 2009/2010

Training delivered by PALAMA PALAMA role is to assist in building a capable public service through providing and co-

ordinating extensive opportunities and access to leadership and management competency

development-oriented programmes.

PSETA will work closely with PALAMA, as a training provider, in the identification and

development of learning programmes that are needed by the public service.

Since PALAMA can be viewed as a training provider in the public sector, its achievements

can be considered together with those of PSETA in its role as facilitator of skills

development in the public service. In this regard, PALAMA has trained 26,490 officials in

2007/8 and had 38,482 officials trained in 2008/9.

Induction of New Public Servants

Working in collaboration with provinces, PALAMA is continuing with the rollout of the

Public Service Induction Programme. In 2009/10, 22,632 new public servants were inducted

using this programme.

Executive Development

2,350 participants from the SMS participated in the EDP in the 2009/10 year, which is more

than 23 percent of the SMS.

PALAMA has also collaborated with the Speakers‟ Forum in the development of the

Legislative Sector Capacity Building Programme for members of Provincial Legislatures and

Parliament. A training needs analysis was undertaken in September and October 2009 and

used to inform the development of an Introductory Programme. This will be followed by a

postgraduate certificate programme in 2011/12. As mentioned in Chapter 1, this is a

programme that PSETA must participate in as Provincial Legislatures and Parliament fall

within its scope of coverage.

In line with the Governance and Administration (G&A) Cluster 2009 Programme of Action,

one of the activities was the rollout of training on the Government-wide Monitoring and

Evaluation System. In this regard, PALAMA was tasked to develop and pilot six Monitoring

and Evaluation (M&E) courses.

Again, this is a programme that will need the involvement of and participation of PSETA as

these courses will need to be accredited as this is one of government‟s major priorities.



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Table 27: Training delivered by PALAMA to Nov 2010

Course name Race

Total Black Coloured Indian White

Academy: Workshop/Consulting (Level 2) 88 1 3 2 94

Academy: Workshop/Consulting (Level 3) 75 6 8 89

Accelerated Development Programme - all sessions 21 21

Advanced Management Development Programme (All Sessions) 591 70 30 49 740

Batho Pele Implementation: Service Delivery for Operational managers

27 27

Contract Management (MFMA) 27 1 28

Diversity Management 35 3 38

EDP: Finance Management & Budgeting 74 5 1 7 87

EDP: Leadership for Good Governance 13 13

EDP: Orientation 193 21 10 9 233

EDP: Policy Formulation & Implementation 39 4 1 6 50

EDP: Programme & Project Management 30 8 1 5 44

EDP: Strategic Human Resource Management 53 3 1 9 66

EDP: Strategic Planning & Management 93 13 2 9 117

Emerging Management Development Programme (All Sessions) 616 53 18 35 722

Ethics and Anti Corruption (non-accredited) 580 44 10 36 670

Ethics Management in Local Government 10 1 12 23

Excellent Customer Care (non-accredited version) 962 125 4 25 1116

Executive Protocol and Diplomacy Seminar 18 4 1 7 30

Executive Support Staff Programme 62 1 63

Foundation Management Development Programme (All Sessions)

184 2 1 3 190

Foundation Management Development Programme Session 2 169 2 1 3 175

Gender Mainstreaming 106 22 3 131

Hearing Procedure 161 2 6 169

Human Resource Planning 34 12 5 51

Information Communication Technology (ICT) Tools 159 17 1 21 198

Introduction to Human Resource Management 25 1 1 27

Introduction to M&E 112 12 4 12 140

Introduction to Standard Chart of Accounts (SCOA) 268 11 2 30 311

Investigating and Presiding Skills (Overview) 36 2 1 39

Job Evaluation Initial 56 4 2 16 78

Job Evaluation Follow-up 54 5 2 14 75

Job Evaluation Panel 132 7 7 17 163

M&E and Strategic Planning 27 24 2 13 66

Project Khaedu: Core Skills 166 9 8 8 191

Project Khaedu: Deployment 162 19 12 21 214

Project Khaedu: SMS - Core Skills 17 17

Project Khaedu: SMS - Deployment 23 2 3 28

Public Financial Management for Non-Financial Managers 265 18 4 11 298

Public Service Induction Levels 1-5 68 1 69

Role of Management in the Internal Control and Governance process

36 2 1 39

SCOA and ERF for Budget Managers and Non-Financial Officials 49 1 2 5 57

SCOA and ERF for Practitioners 290 32 9 14 345

Supply Chain Management for Public Service 248 18 4 24 294

Wamkelekile Induction new SMS 86 3 4 6 99

Total 6540 583 155 457 7735

Source: PALAMA Directorate: Course Systems and Administration Nov 2010

What can be immediately seen from Table 28 is that most of the courses offered by

PALAMA provide similar competencies and skills dimensions as those identified in Chapter

1 as required by public servants to perform the business of government. As has been

mentioned throughout this report, this also shows once again how the work of PSETA and

PALAMA complements each other and why it is necessary for PALAMA to always and

consistently take into account of PSETA‟s priorities and strategic objectives as they have a

big influence on what PALAMA ultimately delivers for the public service.



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Skills development in the public service (WSP 2010 data)

Planned training

This section provides an analysis of planned training that public sector organisations

reported in their 2010 WSP submissions. Because these were 2010 WSPs and they come

with a set of ATRs that speaks to the previous years‟ implementation of the WSPs, it was

not possible to conduct a comparison of what was actually delivered against these plans.

The ATRs that would speak to actuals against the 2010 WSPs will only submitted to the

SETA at the end of June 2011.

Public service employees

Table 29 shows that 49.3 percent of training was planned for employees in the professional category, 14.8 percent for employees in clerical and administrative occupations and 14.2

percent for those in the manager‟s category, and that in total, the public service plans to

train just over 235,000 employees in the 2010 financial year.

From this data it could be said since more than half of the planned training was for

employees in the skilled categories, government departments can be said to be putting

significant effort into ensuring that employees are provided with training that will enhance

their skills and that speaks to the categories where specialised, strategic and leadership skills

are needed.

However, a concern must also be raised that the data suggests that there is too much effort

being put into the higher skilled occupations and little on occupations that involve

practitioners who are at the coal-face of service delivery. It is suggested that care should be

taken in the planning process for a much more improved mix of initiatives for workers in

mid-level and low-skills occupational categories.

Table 28: Planned training by occupational categories

Occupational category Number of beneficiaries

planned to be trained

Percentage of beneficiaries

planned to be trained

Managers 33495 14.2%

Professionals 116116 49.3%

Technicians and trades workers 8315 3.5%

Clerical and administrative workers 34909 14.8%

Sales workers 132 0.05%

Community and personal service workers 22715 9.6%

Machine operators and drivers 3427 1.4%

Elementary occupations 16529 7%

Total 235638 100%


Unemployed beneficiaries

Organisations in the public service are also doing their bit in the training of unemployed

people as shown in the table below. The bulk of this training is also focused on skills in the

professional and clerical occupational categories.



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Table 29: Planned training for unemployed beneficiaries


Number of unemployed

beneficiaries planned to be

trained

Percentage of unemployed

beneficiaries planned to be

trained

Managers 106 0.6%

Professionals 7841 43.5%

Technicians and trades workers 1007 5.6%

Clerical and administrative workers 4705 26.1%

Sales workers 2 0.01%

Community and personal service workers 3450 19.1%

Elementary occupations 907 5%

Total 18018 100%


ABET

ABET is still an issue that South Africa in general is grappling with and the public sector is

expected to lead the way in this regard. Public sector organisations are continuing to put

affected employees on ABET programmes and the figures for planned training in 2010 are

provided below.

Table 30: Planned ABET training

ABET Levels African Coloured Indian White

Total M F D M F D M F D M F D

ABET Level 1 3428 3419 18 20 33 0 5 5 0 11 13 0 6952

ABET Level 2 2550 8561 19 40 61 0 5 5 0 10 18 0 11269

ABET Level 3 2208 2478 14 31 36 0 9 21 0 17 12 0 4826

ABET Level 4 4128 3327 20 59 61 0 11 8 0 29 30 0 7673

Total 12314 17785 71 150 191 0 30 39 0 67 73 0 30720


Because only the WSPs submitted in 2010 were analysed and data for actual training still

outstanding, a comparison of actual training cannot be done at this point. However, this

data shows that less than 20 percent of total public service employees are planned to be

trained in the current financial year, which raises a concern about department‟s

commitment to training their employees. This is something that PSETA has to raise with

government political seniors as it flies in the face of government‟s commitment to skilling its

people as well as contribute to the skilling of unemployed people.

Education and training throughput This section explores throughput of learners from education and training institutions and

aims to quantify how many learners are going through the system, what they are being

trained on and how many qualify or finish their studies and their possible absorption into

employment. This is then contrasted with what the sector needs now and in the future.

This enables us to identify appropriate interventions to ensure that the number of learners

going through the system and qualifying can meet demands of the market and the sector.

4.7.1 GET: General Education and Training

The South African education sector has improved significantly since 1994. The population

recorded much higher participation rates at GET level in the period 1994 to 2009.

Enrolment in primary and secondary education is almost universal and participation among



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females is among the highest in the world. However, pass rates among matriculants has only

increased marginally from 58 percent in 1994 to 60.6 percent in 2009.

Despite these positive trends, the quality of education remains in question and this has

obvious and direct implications for the skills of the school leaver.

4.7.1.1 National Senior Certificate

The National Senior Certificate (NSC) has been criticised for its standard of education,

especially in the sphere of mathematics. The new curriculum has done away with the Higher

and Standard Grade levels of learner participation and now offers the elective of

mathematical literacy in addition to mathematics. Thus the old curriculum and the new one

are practically incomparable. This has thus raised concerns over the standard of

mathematics that is being taught in schools.

The National Senior Certificate (NSC) examination of 2008 was the first that was based on

the New Curriculum Statement (NCS), which requires all learners in Grades 10 to 12 to take seven subjects. Two of these subjects must be South African languages, one of which

must be the language of teaching and learning. In addition to two languages, all learners must

offer Life Orientation and either Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy. In addition to these

four compulsory subjects, learners must choose three subjects from a list of approved

subjects. To obtain an NSC a candidate must, depending on the minimum requirements,

achieve either 40 percent or 30 percent in six subjects. In the seventh subject a candidate is

allowed to achieve less than 30 percent (Department of Education, 2010).

Despite criticisms and hesitations of this new approach to education, South Africa has

entered a new stage of examinations which the Umalusi Statistics Committee has endorsed

as “fair, valid and reliable” (Taylor, 2009).

Table 31: National Senior Certificate examination results for full-time candidates by gender (2009)

Gender

Candidates who

wrote

Candidates Who Passed/Achieved

Admission to Higher Education

Total Qualified for

Bachelor’s

Programs

Qualified for

Diploma

Program

Qualified for

Higher Certificate

Program

No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

Female 300606 54.5% 61147 34.2% 67024 37.5% 50443 28.2% 178614 59.4%

Male 251467 45.5% 48550 31.2% 64011 41.1% 42913 27.5% 155474 61.8%

Total 552073 100% 109697 32.8% 131035 39.1% 93356 27.9% 344088 62.3%

Source: Education Statistics in South Africa 2010

Table 32 above shows that only 62.3 percent candidates are eligible for admission to higher

education. This is significant because the public service is becoming more professionalised

and progressively requires its workers to have a higher education qualification as a minimum

requirement for employment in the public service. This means that the public service will

have to compete with the rest of the economy and the private sector for the percentage of

the 62.3 percent that will eventually receive a higher education qualification.



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4.7.2 FET: Further Education and Training

In January 2007, the DoE began phasing out N1, N2 and N3 programmes and replacing them with NQF 2, 3 and 4-level vocational programmes. The new programmes run for nine

months in alignment with FET in the school system.

The extended duration of these programmes is expected to have profound cost

implications for the Learnership and Apprenticeship system. The increased time means that

learnerships at every level will be extended from one year to 18 months. But still some

considerable amount of work is required to address the responsiveness of college

programmes to labour market demands (HRD Review, 2003). The “N-courses” which

provided the theoretical base for apprenticeship training are being phased out, while the

national shortage of qualified apprentices is increasing and the “import” of skills is evident in

many sectors.

The restructured public FET sector is expected to play a significant role in supplying intermediate skills. It comprises 50 merged, multi-campus institutions (many with two to

three satellite campuses) with great potential for meeting the country‟s skills development

needs. FET colleges are located throughout South Africa with a good geographical spread

and have the capacity to accommodate up to 400,000 students.

As mentioned in chapter 1, the FET sector could play a very important role in the training

of frontline practitioners employed in the public service. Akoojee (2009) makes the point

that the current programme offering of FETs, their business studies in particular, makes

them ideally suited to respond to the needs of the intermediate-level public sector. Their

reach and accessibility provides an important impetus for their suitability.

The PSETA plans to put more emphasis towards the establishment of appropriate quality

frameworks to complement FET‟s participation in the provision of intermediate-level skills

for the public service and enhance their role as a source for lifelong learning.

Akoojee further argues that “intermediate–level skilling is crucial to the democratic project

in South Africa. The inclusion of an intermediate government skills development agenda for

FET colleges can be effectively realised by training midlevel public administrative personnel.

The need to expand the agenda and widen impact is as important to colleges as they are to

government service delivery (2009; p 41).

To further illustrate Akoojee‟s point, the Tables below show the current throughput of

both the NATED and NC(V) FET courses that are directly related to or could be useful to

the business of government as it is described in chapter 1.

Table 32: Current NATED pass rates on courses and subjects directly related to the business of

government (2009 results)

Subject Entered Wrote Passed Pass %

(Entered)

Public Administration N3 7978 6259 3055 48.81%



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Introductory Public Administration N4 285 268 204 76.12%



Public Finance N5 1435 1292 893 69.12%

Income Tax N6 1605 1467 812 55.35%


Public Finance N6 716 628 416 66.24%

Public Law N6 1254 1073 462 43.06%

Source: DOE FET Report 2010

Table 33: Current NATED pass rates on courses and subjects that could be useful to the enhancement of

the business of government

Subject Entered Wrote Passed Pass %

(Entered)

Economic and Legal Environment N2 21 7 7 100%

Administration and Management N3 11 6 2 33.33%

Economic and Legal Environment N3 4566 3108 1748 56.24%

Information Processing N3 2611 1335 561 42.02%

Life Skills N3 74 51 3 5.88%

Office Practice N3 11514 8808 4253 48.29%

Applied Management N4 813 685 407 59.42%

Communication N4 7720 6547 3850 58.81%


Introductory Communication N4 3194 2963 1548 52.24%

Introductory Information Processing N4 3157 2785 2185 78.46%

Management Communication N4 34891 30192 13798 45.7%



Communication N5 4806 4380 2979 68.01%


Management N5 1 1 1 100%



Communication N6 3714 3380 1848 54.67%



Source: DOE FET Report 2010

The tables show that there is an annual steady supply of students with courses that are

directly relevant to the business of government that could be placed in various departments

for experiential training and work exposure which is a requirement for these students

towards getting their full qualifications. This is another aspect of work that the PSETA plans

to tackle as part of its contribution to the NSDS 3.

4.7.3 HET: Higher Education and Training

The role of the HET sector in the development of skilled labour cannot be underestimated.

Analysis of statistics from HET institutions show that there is a steady growth of persons

entering higher education institutions, although the number of those who actually fulfil the

requirements for graduating still needs to be improved. A large number of enrolments are



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in the humanities and related subjects and there are fewer enrolments in SET and business-

related courses.

4.7.3.1 HET institutions offering courses in public administration

All state subsidised HET institutions in South Africa offer a course in Public Administration

except for Rhodes University and the Vaal University of Technology. All HETs offer the

course at both undergraduate and post-graduate levels except for Wits University which

only offers the course at the post-graduate level. Tables 35 and 36 show the number of

enrolments and graduations in Public Administration courses for all HET institutions in 2008

at the degree, diploma and certificate levels.

Table 34: Headcount of unduplicated student enrolments in Public Administration by type of qualification

2008

INSTITUTION OCCASI

ONAL

UG

DIP/CER

T (1 or 2yrs)

UG

DIP/CERT (3yrs)

1ST

BACH

DEG (3yrs)

1ST BACH

DEG

(4yrs or more)

PG DIP/POS

T

DIP/CERT

HONOU

RS/

NH DIP

MASTER

S/

MASTERS DIP

DOCTO

RATE

TOTAL

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

0 0 816 0 167 0 0 35 12 1030

University of Cape Town

0 0 0 6 0 0 8 17 0 31

Central University of Technology, Free

State

0 0 375 7 47 0 1 3 5 438

Durban Institute of Technology

0 0 413 0 68 0 0 5 3 489

University of Fort Hare

0 0 0 25 134 2 10 101 0 273

University of the Free State

4 0 0 285 4 2 15 85 4 399

University of

Johannesburg 0 0 0 133 0 0 29 9 3 174

University of

KwaZulu-Natal 1 0 150 0 0 0 3 31 42 227

University of Limpopo

0 0 408 0 0 0 52 139 0 599

Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

42 115 177 23 0 0 7 90 21 475

North West University

0 0 0 186 0 145 85 127 19 562

University of Pretoria

0 0 479 0 0 0 25 176 51 731

Rhodes

University 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

University of

South Africa 222 576 3391 1398 770 0 268 229 34 6888

University of Stellenbosch

17 0 0 88 5 0 167 164 16 456

Tshwane University of

Technology

0 0 2930 0 188 0 0 62 2 3182

University of Venda

0 0 0 257 0 0 3 96 0 356

Vaal University of Technology

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Walter Sisulu University for Technology and Science, EC

0 330 43 0 0 5 0 0 0 378

University of 0 270 0 39 14 2 25 105 18 474



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INSTITUTION OCCASI ONAL

UG

DIP/CERT (1 or 2yrs)

UG

DIP/CER

T (3yrs)

1ST

BACH DEG (3yrs)

1ST BACH

DEG (4yrs or more)

PG DIP/POS

T DIP/CER

T

HONOU

RS/ NH DIP

MASTERS/

MASTER

S DIP

DOCTO

RATE

TOTAL

Western Cape

University of Witwatersrand

0 0 0 0 0 55 0 21 38 114

University of

Zululand 0 0 0 133 0 0 12 2 3 150

Mangosuthu

University of Technology

0 0 831 0 0 0 0 0 0 831

Total

286 1291 10013 2580 1397 211 710 1497 271 18257

Source: HEMIS database, 2008; Department of Education

Table 35: Number of students who fulfilled the requirements a for Public Administration course by type of

qualification 2008

INSTITUTION

UG DIP/CERT (1 or 2yrs)

UG DIP/CERT (3yrs)

1ST BACH DEG (3yrs)

1ST BACH DEG

(4yrs or more)

PG /DIP/POS

T DIP DIP/CER

T

HONOURS/NH DIP

MASTERS/MASTERS DIP

RESEARCH

MASTERS/MASTERS DIP NON-

RESEARCH

DOCTOR-ATE

TOTAL

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

0 192 0 124 0 0 0 0 2 318

University of Cape Town

0 0 0 0 0 7 0 5 0 12

Central University of Technology, Free State

0 79 5 43 0 1 1 0 0 129

Durban Institute of Technology

0 92 0 30 0 0 0 0 0 122

University of Fort Hare

0 0 4 14 2 2 14 5 0 41

University of the

Free State 0 0 12 1 13 5 7 12 0 50

University of

Johannesburg 0 0 45 1 0 23 2 0 0 71

University of KwaZulu-Natal

0 0 12 0 0 1 1 2 3 19

University of Limpopo

0 0 120 0 0 40 4 3 0 167

Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

0 22 33 9 0 5 7 7 2 85

North West University

0 0 49 0 73 61 2 16 2 203

University of Pretoria

0 0 62 0 0 21 3 33 7 126

Rhodes

University 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

University of South Africa

40 120 63 95 0 33 3 0 2 356

University of Stellenbosch

0 0 10 3 0 71 22 20 3 129

Tshwane University of Technology

1 393 0 71 0 0 1 1 0 467

University of Venda

0 0 42 0 0 3 10 0 0 55

Vaal University of Technology

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Walter Sisulu

University for Technology and

0 55 5 0 5 0 0 0 0 65



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INSTITUTION

UG DIP/CERT (1 or 2yrs)

UG DIP/CERT (3yrs)

1ST BACH DEG (3yrs)

1ST BACH DEG

(4yrs or more)

PG /DIP/POS

T DIP DIP/CER

T

HONOURS/NH DIP

MASTERS/MASTERS DIP

RESEARCH

MASTERS/MASTERS DIP NON-

RESEARCH

DOCTOR-ATE

TOTAL

Science, EC

University of Western Cape

119 0 4 1 2 17 7 7 3 160

University of Witwatersrand

0 0 0 0 36 0 2 7 3 48

University of Zululand

0 0 13 0 0 7 0 0 0 20

Mangosuthu

University of Technology

0 150 0 0 0 0 0 0 150

Total

160 1103 479 392 131 297 86 118 27 2793


The statistics show that about 19 percent of graduations are at the post-graduate level. This

is encouraging since earlier chapters of this SSP have shown the need for more educated

and skilled public service employees at senior management and leadership levels. Increasing

enrolments and graduations at this level should be encouraged as this will enable these

graduates to progress into senior management positions which are urgently required in the

public service and the economy in general.

4.7.3.2 Graduation trends in Public Administration courses 2005-2008

The period between 2006 and 2007 shows a slight dip in the number of students who

graduated in Public Administration from HET institutions with some improvement seen in

2008.



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Figure 9: Graduation trends in Public Administration courses 2005-2008


4.7.4 The phenomenon of unemployed graduates

The education system has been producing an increasing number of graduates over time, and

this is further reflected in the fact that the general workforce is characterised by

increasingly higher level qualifications, however, there exists a disjuncture between the skills

supplied by the education system and the skills demanded by industry, hence the

phenomenon of the unemployed graduate.

According to a recent survey conducted by the Development Policy Research Unit (DPRU)

on top twenty firms in the South African economy, the problem of unemployed graduates is

not related to the quantity but to the quality of graduates (K. Pauw et.al, 2006). Graduates

are reported to require substantial on-the-job training before they begin to be productive.

Graduates also have unrealistic expectations in respect of remuneration and they are often

unwilling to work for an entry-level salary.

The survey also indicated that graduate unemployment is related to the oversupply of

inappropriately qualified graduates. It is argued that the average new graduate‟s education is

of lower quality than of past graduating classes, and the numbers absorbed by firms appear

to be linked to the quality of supply. Firms have indicated that they are willing and able to

increase their intake of graduates provided they are supplied with higher quality labour - a

scenario which results in supply creating its own demand (K. Pauw et.al, 2006).

There is therefore a need for collaboration between education institutions, the public

sector and business in order to address the problems associated with relevance of the

2712

2640

2651

2793

2550

2600

2650

2700

2750

2800

2005 2006 2007 2008

Number of students who graduated in public administration from universities

and universities of technology 2005-2008



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various course modules and the lack of practical application of theory. Collaboration entails

developing courses together and creating opportunities for internships or experiential

training as part of the academic course such that the qualification and practical experience

obtained are relevant to the employer‟s needs.

The education sector faces three distinct challenges, firstly learners exiting secondary

school are not equipped with the quality of skills required to achieve success at HET level

hence the high enrolment and subsequent low graduation rates. Secondly, there is low

uptake of academic pursuits in specialist areas such as engineering and science. Lastly, a

challenge has been identified by DBSA (2008) concerning student readiness for the working

environment. Although students graduate with a specific skills set, they lack experience in

the working environment and this affects productivity and requires increased investments in

training and up-skilling these graduates so they are able to perform optimally. This concern

is further bolstered by the weakened linkages between employers and FET colleges. These

institutions need to work more in tandem with employers to supply work experience while

the student completes his/her studies.

Conclusion The schooling system in the country has been showing an increase in the number of

learners since 1994. Pass rates among matriculants increased from 58 percent in 1994 to

60.6 percent in 2009. Of those who passed the senior certificate in 2009, 62.3 percent are eligible for admission to higher education.

The restructured public FET sector is expected to play a significant role in supplying

intermediate-level skills to the public service. However, this will require concerted effort by

both the PSETA and the FET sector to forge closer relations and put systems in place that

will allow for the development of courses and programmes that speak to the needs of the

public service as an employer.

Regarding HET institutions, while enrolments in these institutions are increasing, success

rates in terms of completion of higher education qualifications are very low. The number of

students enrolling in post graduate studies also needs to be improved.

The analysis of training planned by departments as reported in the WSPs shows the

following:

About 235,600 employees were planned to be trained in the sector in 2010;

The majority of those planned for training were in the professionals occupation category (49.3%), followed by clerical and administrative workers (14.8%) and

managers (14.2%).

The PSC (2010A) reported that between 2000 and 2009, departments obtained a

disappointing average of 44 percent for skills development. The challenge is that although

departments comply with the basic requirements of generating the necessary policies,

strategies and plans, the quality of such documents and their implementation is inadequate.

An example the PSC provides is that departments generally have skills development plans in



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place but only 48 percent of those sampled by the PSC were based on a thorough skills

needs analysis, and in only 12 percent of the cases was the service delivery impact of the

skills development activities assessed. The credibility of these plans and whether they have

any meaningful effect on capacity development and service delivery does not inspire much

confidence.



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4. PRIORITY SCARCE AND CRITICAL SKILLS INTERVENTIONS IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR

The Concept of A Priority Skills Intervention

“In the past it was thought that the coordination between the education system and the labour market could be solved by planning. One well-known approach is the 'manpower requirement model' as applied, for example, by Parnes (1962), who developed a manpower planning model on the basis of the input-output structure of the economy. After a number of steps, the labour requirements in the various occupations and the educational qualifications which are demanded for these occupations are determined. The labour requirements are then compared with forecasts of the working population and the flow of graduates from the various types of training onto the labour market. Partly due to the severe criticism on the initial manpower requirements approach, the planning function has disappeared almost completely. Van Eijs (1994) argues that nowadays manpower forecasting in the West is considered to have two functions: a 'policy function' and an 'information function'. The policy function refers to the usefulness of manpower forecasts as 'a point of reference' for policy recommendations for policy makers who have to take decisions on educational investments or other educational or labour market policies (Wilson, 1993). The information function is primarily intended to assist in occupational or educational guidance (cf. Dekker et al., 1993), although it could also inform firms on possible future recruitment problems due to the scarcity of workers with a particular educational background”. ROA p6 (our emphases).

4.1 Introduction

This chapter deals with priority skills interventions. The quotation immediately above is aimed at clarifying the concept of a “priority skills intervention”. Past sector skills plans have used Chapter Four of the SSP only to identify the “scarce” and “critical” skills in the sector. This chapter includes the scarce skills (section 4.4) and the transversal critical skills (section 4.5). However, these are offered here as a “point of reference” for policy interventions, not as specific PSETA targets. It is the policy interventions (section 4.6) that constitute the priority skills interventions.

4.2 Definitions

The Department of Labour defines scarce and critical skills11 as follows: Scarce skills refer to areas within occupations in which there is a shortage of qualified and experienced people due to unavailability of such people or these people do not meet employment criteria. Scarcity may arise due to absolute scarcity in which few people hold the necessary skills or qualifications (such as those required in a new or emerging occupation). These skills are either impossible to replace or extremely difficult to replace should they exit the sector. Absolute scarcity results in low growth and productivity of



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companies in the sector and the sector itself. Relative scarcity of skills pertains to skills that are difficult to attain due to geographic location, equity requirements or the lead time on attaining the necessary skills. Critical skills refer to “top-up” skills within an occupation. These can include cognitive skills, such as problem solving, language and literacy skills. These “top-up” skills can be specific to a particular occupation resulting in skills gaps which might arise because of phenomena such as improved technologies or new forms of work organisation. Often critical skills shortages are referred to as skills gaps. The sector also uses the term “priority skills” which are those skills that the sector deems as absolutely necessary at any given point in time to resolve some issue around sector skills shortages. In other words, a priority skill is a scarce or critical skill that the sector has prioritized for strategic reasons. A “priority skills intervention”, on the other hand, provides an analytical, systemic perspective on what must be done to address the priority skills needs. It can include, for example, building the supply-side platform (e.g. ensuring the qualifications or providers are in place); clarifying the demand-side information (e.g. where are these employees needed and what will they be required to do?); funding the supply-side (e.g. funding the training required); or improving the links between supply and demand (e.g. through internships). The priority skills interventions in this chapter therefore go beyond a shopping list of graduates needed, toward the strategic objectives PSETA has adopted.

4.3 Data sources and methodology

The scarce skills detailed in section 4.4 are drawn from an aggregation of the PSETA WSP/ATR data for 2011. These should be treated with caution, given the known problems with WSP data described in the methodology section. The results will be compared with the results of the econometric analysis based on the PERSAL data and HR Connect data, that will be completed only in October 2011, and the scarce skills detailed final version of this report will therefore reflect the best estimates for the scarce skills possible. The critical skills as detailed in section 4.5 are based on a detailed study by DPSA, which drew on a representative sample of 40 WSPs across the government sectors (including WSPs submitted by departments that do not submit their WSPs to PSETA); on an analysis of 3 years of competency assessments for 6266 managers; and on a validation study of the competency assessment tool used, involving 343 managers. The priority skills interventions detailed in section 4.6 were identified by the PSETA management and staff in a review of the statistical analysis of the 2011 WSP/ATR data, and form the basis for the revised strategic framework and objectives in Chapter 5.

4.4 Scarce Skills in the Public Service Sector

4.4.1. Scarce skills in the managers occupational category

MANAGERS

Job Title Total Needed

Advertising, Marketing and Sales Managers (Skill Level 5) 4



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Chief Executives and Managing Directors (Enterprises / Organisations) (Skill Level 5)

9

Construction Managers (Skill Level 5) 231

Contract, Programme and Project Managers 2321

Contract, Programme and Project Managers (Skill Level 4) 276

Corporate (Administration & Business) Services Managers (Skill Level 5)

5890

Engineering Managers (Skill Level 5) 508

Finance Managers (Skill Level 5) 178

General Managers (Skill Level 5) 8

Health and Social Services Managers (Skill Level 5) 209

Human Resource Managers (Skill Level 5) 5

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Managers (Skill Level 5)

35

Manufacturers (Skill Level 5) 2

Miscellaneous Specialist Managers (Skill Level 4 and 5) 27

Policy and Planning Managers (Skill Level 5) 8

Production / Operations Managers (Skill Level 5) 4

Research and Development Managers (Skill Level 5) 24

Senior Government and Local Government Officials (Skill Level 5) 113

Supply and Distribution Managers (Skill Level 5) 157

Transport Services Managers (Skill Level 4) 21


4.4.2. Scarce skills in the professionals occupational category

PROFESSIONALS

Job Title Total Needed Accountants (Skill Level 5) 72

Actors, Dancers and Other Entertainers (Skill Level 5) 7



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Actuaries, Mathematicians and Statisticians (Skill Level 5) 14

Agricultural and Forestry Scientists (Skill Level 5) 36

Anaesthetists (Skill Level 5) 59

Architects and Landscape Architects (Skill Level 5) 64

Archivists, Curators and Records Managers (Skill Level 5) 107

Artistic Directors, and Media Producers and Presenters (Skill Level 5) 1

Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers (Skill Level 5) 105

Authors, and Book and Script Editors (Skill Level 5) 2

Cartographers and Surveyors (Skill Level 5) 21

Chemical, Materials and Metallurgical Engineers and Technologists (Skill Level 5)

5

Chemists and Food and Wine Scientists (Skill Level 5) 5

Civil Engineers and Technologists and Quantity Surveyors (Skill Level 5) 1177

Computer Network Professionals (Skill Level 5) 39

Conveyancers and Legal Executives (Skill Level 5) 50

Database and Systems Administrators, and ICT Security Specialists (Skill Level 5)

8

Dental Practitioners (Skill Level 5) 307

Dieticians (Skill Level 5) 559

Early Childhood Development Practitioners (Skill Level 5) 236

Economists (Skill Level 5) 208

Electrical Engineers and Technologists (Skill Level 5) 54

Environmental Scientists (Skill Level 5) 208

Film, Television, Radio and Stage Directors (Skill Level 5) 4

Financial Investment Advisors and Managers (Skill Level 5) 2

Foundational Phase School Teachers (Grade R - 3) (Skill Level 5) 236



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Further Education and Training Teachers and Lecturers (Grade 4 - 9) (Skill Level 5)

2503

Generalist Medical Practitioners (Skill Level 5) 5657

Geologists, Geophysicists and Earth Science Technologists (Skill Level 5) 74

Graphic and Web Designers, and Illustrators (Skill Level 5) 24

Human Resource Professionals (Skill Level 5) 154

ICT Business and Systems Analysts (Skill Level 5) 20

ICT Support and Test Engineers (Skill Level 5) 1

ICT Trainers (Skill Level 5) 1

Industrial and Mechanical Engineers and Technologists (Skill Level 5) 89

Intelligence and Policy Analysts (Skill Level 5) 29

Intermediate and Senior Phase Teachers (Skill Level 5) 874

Internal Medicine Specialists (Skill Level 5) 1212

Journalists, Other Writers and Editors (Skill Level 5) 7

Land, Property and Assets Economists and Valuers (Skill Level 5) 18

Librarians (Skill Level 5) 245

Life Scientists (Skill Level 5) 22

Management and Organisation Analysts (Skill Level 5) 1

Medical Imaging Professionals (Skill Level 5) 1708

Midwives (Skill Level 5) 973

Mining Engineers and Technologists (Skill Level 5) 102

Miscelaneous Arts Professionals (Skill Level 5) 2

Miscelaneous Media Professionals (Skill Level 5) 4

Miscellaneous Air and Marine Transport Professionals (Skill Level 5) 10



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Miscellaneous Engineering Professionals (Skill Level 5) 30

Miscellaneous Health Diagnostic and Promotion Professionals (Skill Level 5)

342

Miscellaneous Information and Organisation Professionals (Skill Level 5) 11

Miscellaneous Medical Practitioners (Skill Level 5) 529

Miscellaneous Natural and Physical Science Professionals (Skill Level 5) 4

Multimedia Specialists and Web Developers (Skill Level 5) 2

Music Professionals (Skill Level 5) 2

Occupational Therapists (Skill Level 5) 447

Occupational and Environmental Health Professionals (Skill Level 5) 17

Optometrists and Orthoptists (Skill Level 5) 189

Pharmacists (Skill Level 5) 2219

Photographers (Skill Level 5) 3

Physiotherapists (Skill Level 5) 795

Podiatrists (Skill Level 5) 15

Psychiatrists (Skill Level 5) 6

Psychologists (Skill Level 5) 472

Recreation and Community Arts Workers (Skill Level 5) 75

Registered Nurses (Skill Level 5) 25504

Social Professionals (Skill Level 5) 59

Social Services Professionals (Skill Level 5) 5939

Software and Applications Programmers (Skill Level 5) 9

Solicitors (Skill Level 5) 21

Special Education Teachers (Skill Level 5) 212

Speech Professionals and Audiologists (Skill Level 5) 275

Surgeons (Skill Level 5) 29

Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (Skill Level 5) 211

Technical Sales Representatives (Skill Level 5) 300



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Training and Development Professionals (Skill Level 5) 18702

Urban and Regional Planners (Skill Level 5) 139

Veterinarians (Skill Level 5) 121


4.4.3. Scarce skills in the technicians occupational category

TECHNICIANS AND TRADE WORKERS


Agricultural Produce Analysts (Skill Level 3) 15

Agricultural and Forestry Technicians (Skill Level 4) 133

Agricultural, Forestry and Primary Products Inspectors (Skill Level 4) 100

Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Mechanics (Skill Level 3) 5

Architectural, Building and Surveying Technicians (Skill Level 4) 309

Bricklayers and Stonemasons (Skill Level 3) 10

Carpenters and Joiners (Skill Level 3) 191

Civil Engineering Draftspersons and Technicians (Skill Level 4) 227

Electricians (Skill Level 3) 474

ICT Support Technicians (Skill Level 4) 248

Mechanical Engineering Draftspersons and Technicians (Skill Level 4) 29

Medical Technicians (Skill Level 4) 448

Metal Fitters and Machinists (Skill Level 3) 6

Miscellaneous Building and Engineering Draftspersons and Technicians (Skill Level 4)

36

Other Miscellaneous Science Technicians (Skill Level 4) 43

Other Miscellaneous Technicians and Trades Workers (Skill Level 3) 98

Performing Arts Technicians (Skill Level 3) 4

Plumbers (Skill Level 3) 234



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Safety Inspectors (Skill Level 4) 2

Veterinary Nurses (Skill Level 3) 10


4.4.4. Scarce skills in the clerical and administrative workers category

CLERICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE WORKERS

JobTitle Total Needed

Human Resource Clerks (Skill Level 2) 2

Inspectors and Regulatory Officers (Skill Level 2) 40

Office Administrators (Skill Level 3) 23

Payroll Clerks (Skill Level 2) 2

Secretaries (Skill Level 3) 30


4.4.5. Scarce skills in the elementary workers category

During 2010, the PSETA WSP analysis reported a shortage of 993 handypersons. PSETA

took a decision that this was unlikely to be an absolute shortage in South Africa. The

decision is validated by the 2011 WSP result reported immediately below: the shortage has

dropped to only 2.

ELEMENTARY OCCUPATIONS


Handypersons (Skill Level 1) 2


4.5 Critical Skills – the “Transversal” Senior Management Service Skills Set

4.5.1. The strategic significance of the transversal SMS critical skills

As discussed in Chapter 2, several reviews of the state have highlighted the need to strengthen senior management competencies. These include the 15-Year Review; the Planning Commission’s Diagnostic Report; various Public Service Commission reports; and the DPSA strategic framework. It is important to emphasise that skills development alone cannot address the problems in isolation; however, it is also true that without skills development, the other initiatives will be undermined:

“The challenges of service provision arise not fundamentally from a shortage of people, but from problems of skills and systems to deploy its human and financial resources” (15-Year Review, p1).

DPSA has accordingly scoped the challenge and has multiple initiatives in place to address the concern. During 2011, the Chief Directorate for Senior Management Service in DPSA



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produced a detailed analysis of the “transversal” management skills. The report (Report on Organisational Skills Requirements and Senior Management Service Skills Gaps, DPSA 2011) on drew on three sets of data:

a representative sample of WSPs from departments and entities in the public service;

a validation study of the new competency assessment instruments;

competency-based assessment data over a three-year period. The “transversal” critical skills required in the SMS field detailed here are drawn from the data in this report.

4.5.2. The WSP data

The WSP analysis was based on ahe sample of National and Provincial Departments as well as Entities. In total 40 Departments and Entities were analysed (the breakdown is provided in the tables below). The detailed CMC skills, technical competencies and other related skills as detailed in the tables broadly support the aggregation of the SMS critical skills needs as detailed in 4.5.4.



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4.5.3. The competency assessment tool validation report data

The competency-based assessment data reported under 4.5.4 below was subjected to validation during an analysis of the validity of the competency-based assessment tool used. The results of the validation study show that the Strategic Capability and Leadership competency was the strongest competency measured while the Financial Management Competency was the weakest. In terms of the competency assessment, females were on average rated higher than males (statistically significantly so) in terms of Strategic capability and Leadership. An interesting aspect that came out was contrary to the actual ratings, in terms of the self-rating, males rated themselves statistically significantly higher than females in terms of Strategic and leadership capability. As a result of the validation study, PSETA and the DPSA therefore have a high degree of confidence in the validity of the SMS critical skills as identified in 4.5.4. below.

4.5.4. The competency-based assessment data

A total of 6266 competency assessments were conducted over three years, between



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2008-2010. About a third of those candidates assessed during this period were ultimately appointed into the positions they were applying for since most assessments were done during the recruitment process. The sample (summarized in the graph below) is therefore assumed to be a valid sample of the SMS critical skills needs.

Source: Report on Organisational Skills Requirements and Senior Management Service Skills Gaps, DPSA 2011 The analysis of this data reveals that the critical skills gaps across different occupational levels in the SMS category are as follows:



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Based on the data gathered and analysed, it became evident that SMS members do not only fall short on generic managerial competencies, but also on technical competencies and other related skills that are necessary for a well functioning organisation and effective service delivery. According to the Competency Assessment Framework, the following proficiency scale for CMCs is applicable at various performer levels:

1: Beginner 2: Basic



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3: Competent (ideal level for a Director) 4: Advanced (ideal level for a Chief Director) 4.5-5 Advanced to expert (ideal level for a DDG) 5: Expert (ideal level for a DG)

DPSA and the relevant departments and entities have therefore put in place a developmental component in the sense that where the assessments indicate gaps, personal development plans (PDP’s) are being implemented and managed to ensure appropriate development for long-term effective functioning of all senior managers. The need for visionary and innovative leadership to drive major strategic initiatives was identified as a core requirement of the revised framework for leadership and management assessment.

4.6 Priority skills interventions

The priority skills interventions detailed below were developed in a workshop with the PSETA management and staff, during which the statistical analysis of the 2011 WSP/ATR data was reviewed. These interventions form the evidence-base on which the strategic plans were reviewed, and are therefore crucial to interpreting Chapter 5.

4.6.1. Retirement and succession planning

The demographics of employment in the public service sector show that 33 417 employees will be retiring within by 2015; and a further 87 149 will be retiring by 2020. What is unclear yet is how many of these employees are in scarce skill occupations. The PSETA economic analysis workstream will be reporting on this matter in the final version of this SSP. Given the pattern of an aging workforce in much of the private sector in South Africa and in both public and private sectors in many other countries, however, the South African



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public service sector has a healthy age demographic. At this stage all that can be highlighted is the need for retirement and succession planning across the public sector.

4.6.2. Raising the base level of learning in the sector

The educational profile of the sector shows that 0.8% of employees have a masters degree or

Ph.D.; and 11.8% have any other post-graduate qualification. Although the statistics are

blurred by the high number of people whose education levels are unspecified (46.9%), it is

probably a safe assumption that the bulk of these have not completed formal schooling.

When added to the almost 32% of people whose education levels are known, this would

suggest that some 77% of public sector employees hold at best a school-leavers qualification,

and a very high percentage hold less than this. Given the known problems with general

education itself in South Africa, a key priority for the public sector must therefore be to raise

the base levels of learning in the public service sector. The funded ABET programs are

making a contribution in this regard, but more innovative strategies may be required. (For

example, the National Department of Health incentivised people re-writing their school-

leavers certificate by offering bursaries to those who emerged with top marks from the

group).

4.6.3. Unaccredited training

Almost 80% of the money spent on skills development in the sector is reported as “unaccredited” training. There may be a variety of factors behind this. One is that the skills development needs of professionals are usually met through continuous professional development, which has hitherto been unaccredited. A second may be that the supply-side capacity to address public sector skills development does not exist. (This is supported by the PSETA analysis of the skills development needs in two provinces, which showed that very many of their training budgets are allocated for training for which no accredited providers exist at all; or not in the province). A third may be that the skills development funding is being used by departments as a “slush” fund, being used to fund attendance at workshops or conferences that have not been budgeted. Whatever the cause, PSETA is unable to report on the return on investment, or whether the training is serving the purposes of building public sector capacity, until such time as we investigate further. PSETA therefore intends to research the issue further in 2013 as a basis for developing interventions appropriate to resolving the matter.

4.6.4. Who is benefiting from skills development funding?

NSDS3 has introduced new “equity” measurement indicators. Class, region and HIV/AIDS are therefore now included alongside those used in NSDS1 and NSDS2 (race, gender and disability). At this stage, the indicators require much more specific definition if they are to be used consistently across sectors. For example, what measure of class will be used? However, it is clearly DHET’s intention to ensure that the funding is reaching those most in need; and that it is distributed fairly across provinces and the urban/rural divide. Some preliminary analysis of the equity dimension of funding was done during the WSP data analysis this year, but PSETA intends to revise the WSP template to ensure data that will allow a more detailed analysis in future.



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4.6.5. The training of unemployed people

The training of unemployed people by the public sector has a strikingly successful completion rate (64.95%). What is less clear is how many people completing programs found employment thereafter, or employment within the public sector. The public sector is clearly experiencing skills shortages; and PSETA therefore intends to guide the sector toward training unemployed people for these occupations. PSETA also aims to link them into direct employment opportunities within the public sector wherever possible, or into employment serving the public sector as service providers. For example, PSETA will be training unemployed people in three provinces during 2013. PSETA has also identified a shortage of accredited providers to serve provincial training needs in these provinces. Through the training, PSETA will be establishing training cooperatives in each province that will establish the trainees as training providers addressing the provincial training needs, thereby filling a gap in the supply side.

4.6.6. Building supply-side capacity

As indicated immediately above, there appears to be a significant need to build relevant supply side capacity to address the prevalence of unaccredited training.

4.6.7. Improving return on investment

The completion rates for the public sector suggest that the biggest possible return on investment could be achieved through improving learner completion rates.

4.6.8. Capacitating the state to lead skills development across sectors

NSDS3 has provided for state leadership of skills development across sectors, to ensure that SETA efforts and resources are aligned with state priorities. Yet even while government departments sit on SETA boards, in most cases the SETA SSPs mention relevant legislation or policy frameworks, but little attempt is made to cross-reference these to the scarce skill needs or priorities adopted. If the state is to lead skills development efforts across SETAs, government departments will clearly need to be supported in doing this. PSETA has identified two possible strategies that may be useful. The first is to use the “cost-benefit” model developed by the Department of Justice, for costing the labour and skills needs of any legislation. PSETA intends to issue guidelines to government departments on the methodology and how to use it in ensuring they guide the other SETAs effectively. Secondly, for government departments who hold a wide-ranging, cross-cutting policy mandate, the Department of Environmental Affairs has followed the route of developing a “meta-skills plan”, which brings the policy mandate closer to the sector skills plans. PSETA also intends to draw the intention of its constituents to this.



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5. PUBLIC SERVICE SECTOR SKILLS STRATEGY 2012-13

5.1 Summary of Policy Frameworks Relevant to the Public Service Sector Skills Strategy

The document has provided a situation analysis as well as a review of the overall context of

the public services sector and the range of challenges facing the Public Service SETA. This was aimed at providing a basis for understanding key strategic issues and choices PSETA

needs to make to achieve its core business and legislative mandate. These issues will

underpin the formulation of PSETA‟s strategic objectives and subsequent planning

approaches.

Key national and sector strategies The NSDS III requires sector skills strategies to contribute to the achievement of the

country‟s new economic growth and social development goals. These are embodied in the

new Medium Term Strategic Framework‟s strategic priorities, which are the following:

i. Speeding up growth and transforming the economy to create decent work and

sustainable livelihoods

ii. Massive programme to build economic and social infrastructure

iii. Comprehensive rural development strategy linked to land and agrarian reform and

food security

iv. Strengthen the skills and human resource base

v. Improve the health profile of all South Africans

vi. Intensify the fight against crime and corruption

vii. Build cohesive, caring and sustainable communities

viii. Pursuing African advancement and enhanced international co-operation

ix. Sustainable resource management and use

x. Building a developmental state, including improvement of public services and

strengthening democratic institutions

From these government priorities, it is clear that the work of the PSETA contributes

directly and impacts on all of them. This is because PSETA has the responsibility of

contributing to the delivery of all of these priorities through ensuring that the public service

employees that will be driving their implementation are skilled in operationalising and

delivering the business of government

Now all of these strategic priorities have to be located within a range of other supporting

strategies that have been developed and put in place to support the delivery of these

outputs. Key amongst these strategies is the National HRD Strategy.

The HRD strategy for the Public Service is both a statement of strategic priorities and an

outline of a plan of action for responding to the National Skills challenges now faced at all

public service delivery points. In light of the circumstances of the various departments of government in respect to their human resource capacity to deliver, and in light of the

market variables which affect the availability of skills to public organizations, the role of the

HRD strategy is twofold:



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a) To ensure that there is a steady flow of contributing and productive public servants

in all spheres of government.

b) To enable an adequate level of human capital performance in public service

organizations so as to ensure effective service delivery in all spheres of government.

The HRD strategy is therefore intended as a general guide that will enrich and enhance the

capacity of the Public Service to acquire, develop and use their people in order to increase

productivity and enhance the effectiveness of service delivery.

The Strategic Framework for HRD in the Public Service stands on four pillars of strategic

interventions. Based on the research review, each of these pillars represents a critical set of

strategic initiatives which will further strengthen Human Resource Development in the

Public Service. Each strategic pillar, and the initiatives they embody, are highlighted below.

PILLAR 1: The Capacity Development Initiatives

Strengthening systems for workplace learning

Integrated ABET framework

Leadership development management strategies

A more strategic role for professional bodies – Norms, Standards & Capacity

Development

Promoting learnerships, internships & traineeships

A National/Provincial Public Service Academy

E-learning for the Public Service

Fostering HEI and FETC Partnerships

PILLAR 2: The Organizational Support Initiatives

Human resource planning – supply and demand management

Knowledge and information management

Performance management development systems

Promoting appropriate organizational structures for HRD

Ensuring the adequacy of physical and human resources and facilities

Managing employee health & wellness

Career planning & talent management

Mobilization of management support

PILLAR 3: The Governance and Institutional Development Initiatives

Strengthening and aligning governance roles in HRD (SETAs, DPSA, PALAMA/Provincial Public Service Academies)

Managing HRD policy and planning frameworks and guidelines

Fostering effective monitoring, evaluation and impact analysis

Managing the effectiveness of communication

Promoting HR learning networks

Promoting values, ethics and a professional code of practice

Utilization of the strategic role of SETAs

PILLAR 4: Initiatives to Support Government’s Economic Growth & Development

Initiatives



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Promoting ASGISA, JIPSA, EPWP, PGDP, IDPs

Integrating NEPAD, AU, regional and global programmes for capacity development

Awareness promotion of growth and development initiatives

Developing capacity to promote success in implementation

Promoting integrated and inter-sectoral approaches to developmental priorities

Responsiveness to the millennium development goals

The HRD Strategic Framework for the Public Service as outlined above is presented here as

a platform for cohesive and concerted effort, and as a call to action for all those whose role

may contribute to the transformation of the public service through developing capacity in

people.

Equity targets (a cross-cutting objective) According to the draft Framework for the National Skills Development Strategy 2011/12 –

2015/16 (April, 2010), there is a recognition that sectors are different in their skills needs

but that they also share a common commitment to the national vision of an inclusive

society. This means that those that have been excluded by past discriminatory practices

should be actively embraced so that the country‟s future is brighter for all. In this regard,

the draft framework identifies at least seven forms of exclusion which too often compound

to create insurmountable barriers for some. These are listed below:

Class

Race

Gender

Age

Disability

HIV/AIDS

Geography

In meeting the strategic objectives of the PSETA and NSDS 3, PSETA will incorporate these

equity requirements in all its programmes as cross-cutting objectives.

5.2 Sector Strategic Objectives



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Strategic Goal 1: Building the Public Service Sector’s capacity to better identify their skills development

needs, plan, manage, report on and steer skills development efforts.

Problem Statement

Until 2009, PSETA was located within DPSA. Within the past year, the organization has re-established itself as an

independent statutory body with its own offices, staff, systems, resources and profile. Achievements include:

80% of the public service sector is involved in identifying their skills development needs and undertaking skills development efforts.

HR Connect established to improve skills development planning and information. The PERSAL system provides the public service sector with more valid and comprehensive

employment information. After several years of manual system the PSETA now has an MIS system. 60% of the SDFs in the sector regularly participate in sector skills planning by attending forums. Misalignment of WSP data and HR Connect. The WSP/ATR template does not provide valid data that lends itself to statistical analysis. PSETA does not have a five year data to provide time series data yet. There are clear anomalies in the WSP/ATR data which suggest poor workplace skills planning or poor

data capturing. Most training committees still don not clearly understand their roles in skills development within

their departments. Skills planning mechanisms, methods are still poorly understood in the sector. Poor alignment between department plans and skills plans. No sufficient career guidance and information dissemination in the public service sector. Misalignment of QMR/ATR data The public service sector faces a number of pressing growth demand and replacement demand

challenges. The public service sector faces retention issues on some scarce and critical skills occupations. Existing training initiatives are not servicing the needs efficiently or effectively.

Goal Statement

Facilitate better understanding of skills needs in the public service sector through

evidence based skills planning, accurate dissemination of information, and strengthened

stakeholder participation to achieve a skilled and capable workforce.



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Strategic Objective 1.1: Agree on long term models and partnerships.

Strategic Initiatives Outputs

1. Reach agreement with HR Connect on the relationship between WSP and HR Connect.

2. Reach agreement on the long term model for

sector skills planning (e.g. data requirements, questions to be answered, analysis to be done, stakeholders and role relationships).

3. Establish partnerships with appropriate

research institutions, including HET’s.

1. PSETA/DPSA agreement on WSP/HR Connect integration signed by 31 March 2012.

2. MoU’s signed with three research partners by

31 March 2012.

Strategic Objective 1.2: Capacitate SDF and Training Committee to strengthen skills

planning.


1. Develop SDF and Training Committee guides. 2. Provide capacity building.

1. Guides developed by 30 November 2011 and 250 copies of SDF guides, and 1000 copies of Training Committee guides printed.

2. Capacity building workshops held for SDFs and Training by 31 March 2013.

Strategic Objective 1.3: Provide skills planning tools and systems that are responsive to skills

needs and challenges in the sector


1. Review WSP/ATR templates to adequately capture skills needs in the sector.

2. Review the MIS.

1. Incorporate all the skills planning templates, e.g. WSP/ATR, WSP/ATR evaluation form, 1% monitoring template into MIS by 31 March 2012.



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5.2.1. Strategic Goal 2


Strategic Objective 1.4: Building widespread understanding of the SSP and Career Guide.


1. Develop the career guide.

2. Provide career guidance.

3. Participate in regional and national forums, workshops and conferences.

4. Colloquium with DG’s and PAM Institutes.

1. Career Guide updated by 15 March 2012, 15 000 career guide flyers developed by 15 March 2012.

2. Career guidance strategy developed by 30 March 2012. Participated in at least 1 major Career Exhibition by 31 March 2013.

3. Attended 3 National Skills Conferences, 4 Inter-SETA Forums, 4 DHET QLF workshops.

4. 1 colloquium with Public Service Sector DG’s and PAM institutes.

Links to NSDS, HRDSA & NSA:

Strategic Goal 3: Retaining and developing the current stock of skills in the public sector.

Problem Statement

Previous year report (QMR) indicate numbers increasing for employed bursaries and Skills

programmes (employed)

Positive figure of unemployed completions

Public service sector training interventions are not addressing scarce priority skills (x% of investment

in public service sector training geared towards developing scare priority skills)

Programmes / interventions not addressing public service sector demands – no uptake of X% of

learning programmes 30% of public service sector have Grade 9 to 12, often do not have prospects for career growth

Goal Statement



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Facilitate Workplace –based Skills Development for the Public Service Sector by ensuring

increased access to Quality Learning Programmes, and improve Access to Experiential Learning

opportunities for New Labor Market entrants and Current Employees.

Strategic Objective 3.1: Raising the Qualifications Bar for under-qualified public service

sector employees.


1. Advocacy and implementation of PIVOTAL

programmes within public service sector

2. Conclude PSETA MoU’s with FET’s & HET’s

in all the nine provinces (partnership with

ETQA) - link this to capacitating FETs.

3. Developing relevant learning programmes and

facilitates the registration thereof.

4. Monitoring and evaluation of learning programmes.

1. Improved completions 2. Signed MoU’s for implementation. 3. Registered programmes and report on

uptake. 4. M & E Reports and action plan to address the

gaps identified.

Strategic Objective 3.2: Encourage Workplace based skills development in the public

service sector


1. Launch capacity building interventions to

market PIVOTAL programmes.

2. Training and development of ETD practitioners ( SDFs, Mentors, and ECF)

1. Workshops 2. ETD Practitioners better understand their

roles and responsibilities – reports.

Strategic Objective 3.3: Ensure that PSETA has adequate and Skilled Staff to carry out its

mandate, in compliance with relevant legislation.


1. Develop and implement Guidelines, Templates

and SOPs to enable consistent implementation

of learning programmes.

1. Approved policies, guidelines, procedures and templates.



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Strategic Objective 3.4: 300 Employed and Unemployed Learners trained on Artisanship

and Trades – including Sec 13 and Sec 28 of MTA


1. Provide support for the accreditation of trade

learning provision and testing centers-

partnership with INDLELA.

2. Monitor and evaluate trade learning provision and testing centers.

1. Four providers accredited for trade implementation

2. Four centre’s monitored and evaluated for the

provision of training and testing (Reports).


Strategic Goal 4: Improving the flow of Skills into the Sector at the same time addressing poverty and

Unemployment.

Problem Statement

Significant increases taking place in learnerships and internships suggests increasing uptake, participation, workplace readiness (but check variance)

The value and impact of bursaries in building the public sector capacity needs to be better understood – (link to exploring return on investment)

Bursaries were proposed by some provinces for the unemployed as a way of by-passing lack of provincial provider capacity

Unemployed completion rate good, but unclear how many find employment in the public sector



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Most of the PSETA registered qualification have not attracted interest from providers therefore rendering them inactive, the reason for the low intake is a result of the providers preferring to apply for the single unit standard accreditation

PSETA’s readiness to offer trades…? We are unclear about this, we are therefore in a process of scoping and planning (put this comment under the PSETA capacity section)

Qualifications don’t seem always to speak to the need (e.g. unit standards vs. whole qualifications Transitional landscape of the QCTO requires major investment of time and resources Completion rates quite low The public service sector needs to train much higher numbers than we have resources for; therefore

we need to innovate more economical supply-side solutions Top management needs to buy in better Most of our Stakeholders prefer to implement other SETA’s learnerships/ETQA qualifications There is culture of using learnership stipend to mitigate poverty and unemployment. Workplace readiness to take in and properly support large numbers of internships, learnerships and

apprenticeships is frail. Build supply-side capacity for trades especially through FET/HET and state owned entities Opportunities for stimulating new entrants into the Public Service Sector are not well developed - supply-side

capacity for some public service sector needs doesn’t exist or is inadequate – especially in the provinces (see stats on this)

Goal Statement

PSETA aims to Increase its Capacity to Partner with the Public Service Sector in its drive to

create a Skills base essential for better Service Delivery.

Strategic Objective 4.1: Tap into Economically Marginalized Groups (Youth, Women,

Disabled in Rural Areas.




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1. To equip and empower public FET’s colleges for greater contribution and access to Skills.

2. Development in the country.

3. Develop qualifications to support occupation-specific career paths within the public service sector.

4. To increase the number of Service Providers that PSETA will contract to conduct skills training for Public Service.

5. Contribute to the reduction of the unemployment through the youth empowerment projects.

1. Accredit FETs in the Nine Provinces. 2. Six priority skills within the sector have

standards and qualifications in lace/ registered.

3. 24 Sustainable training cooperatives are registered/ accredited to deliver interventions in the Public service.

4. Accredit and support 14 private training providers.

5. Engage and empower 305 Rural Youth in meaningful learning interventions with the view of providing access to sustainable career opportunities in the Public Service Sector.

Strategic Objective 4.2: Ensure Quality of Learning.


1. Develop PSETA Quality Management System (QMS).

2. Accreditation of providers in line with ISO and QCTO standards.

3. Capacitate workplace to be conducive for experiential learning.

4. PSETA Integrated Monitoring and evaluation system.

1. ISO accredited PSETA. 2. Interlinked departmental policies and

procedures. 3. Increased number of accredited providers. 4. Improved quality of learning within the sector. 5. Alignment with QCTO requirements. 6. Improved quality of workplace learning.

Strategic Objective 4.3: Ensure that PSETA has adequate and Skilled Staff to carry out its

mandate, in compliance with relevant legislation.




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1. Develop and implement Guidelines, Templates

and SOPs to enable consistent implementation

of learning programmes.

1. Approved policies, guidelines, procedures and templates.


Problem Statement

Until 2009, PSETA was located within DPSA. Within the past year, the organization has re-established itself as an independent statutory body with its own offices, staff, systems, resources and profile. Achievements include: The SETA has established infrastructure such as a functioning board, executives and clear lines of

reporting. The current staff is skilled and competent to discharge on the SETA mandate. The SETA has developed its own policies and system. The SETA is located in a decent environment with easy access to its stakeholders. The SETA has established rapport and partnerships with its delivery partners and stakeholders

within the sector. The SETA is now visible and accessible to its stakeholders. The SETA has received NSF funding and is rolling out strategic projects that are geared to

capacitating the sector. However, much remains to be done to ensure that PSETA is able to fulfill its mandate efficiently and effectively: Currently PSETA does not receive levies from government departments – financial constraints Serious staff shortages in relation to core processes, large projects as well as support functions. Improve current skills to ensure compliance with PFMA and Treasury Regulations Improve on policies, procedures and systems Improve capacity within governance structures Improve communication and marketing of PSETA to stakeholders No provincial presence THIS TO REFLECT THE FLOW OF VALUE CHAIN

Goal Statement

Ensure that PSETA has an adequate and viable funding model and acts in compliance with the

PFMA and National Treasury regulations.

Ensure that PSETA has highly efficient governance and corporate services and systems to

effectively discharge its mandate.

Ensure that PSETA has adequate and skilled staff to carry out its mandate, in compliance with

relevant legislation.

Ensure that PSETA improves on its communication and marketing strategy

Annually review policies, procedures and systems.

Strategic Objective 5.1: Ensure that PSETA has an adequate and viable funding model and acts

in compliance with the PFMA and National Treasury regulations



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1. Develop a funding model and mobilize all stakeholders for approval 2. Broaden PSETA’s scope of coverage, to include all public service orientated entities and statutory bodies

1. Present the funding model to DHET for recommendation to the Minister. Expedite process through regular meetings with relevant stakeholders. Expect response by 3 by June 2012 2. Submit SIC Code application to DHET by June 2012.

Strategic Objective 5.2: Ensure that PSETA has highly efficient governance and corporate

services and systems to effectively discharge its mandate


1. Develop a clear and well-defined PSETA strategic and operational plan 2. Develop, review and implement economical, effective, efficient coherent set of systems and processes. 3. Establish an appropriate Human, Finance and Infra-structure resources. 4. Establish effective and efficient monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.

1. A clear and well-defined Strategic (now September 2011) and Operational Plan by February 2012. 2. A Coherent set of systems and processes in place by October 2012. 3. Appropriate infra-structure resources in place by April 2012. 4. Effective and Efficient Monitoring and Evaluation Tools developed and implemented by April 2012.

Strategic Objective 5.3: Ensure that PSETA has adequate and skilled staff to carry out its

mandate, in compliance with relevant legislation




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1. Review the PSETA organizational structure to identify gaps and to ensure retention.

2. Improve current skills through a skills development plan (consolidated PDPs)

3. Finalise DPSA secondments to reduce risk 4. Develop and implement HR Strategy

1. A clearly defined organisational structure in place by April 2012.

2. An approved Skills Development Plan and

implementation by September 2012. 3. Finalise the appointment of DPSA staff by April

2012. 4. Approved HR Strategy and implementation by

April 2012.

Strategic Objective 5.4: Ensure that PSETA improves on its communication and marketing

strategy


1. Review and improve current communication and marketing strategy, including stakeholder engagement 2. Establish provincial presence through mobile offices and/or shared services with other G-SETAs. 3. Implement public relations and marketing interventions in the form of road shows, stakeholder workshops, educational and promotional materials.

1. Improved and approved communication and marketing strategy and implementation by June 2012.

2. Provincial presence and implementation by April 2012.

3. Public relations and marketing interventions in place by June 2012.

Strategic Objective 5.5: Annually review policies, procedures and systems and tools




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1. Review policies in line with PSETA mandate, updated legislation, government skills initiatives 2. Review and set up Standard Operating Procedures and tools to support PSETA policies 3. Establish and align coherent systems to support PSETA’s business

1. Reviewed and approved policies and implementation by April 2012. 2. Reviewed and approved SOPs and tools in place by August 2012. 3. Coherent and effective systems and implementation by February 2013.



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5.3 Relationship between the Public Service Sector Skills Strategy and NSDS3, the HRDSA and the National Skills Accord

The PSETA strategy fits into the NSDS III priorities, the HRDSA Commitments and the NSA priorities as follows: NSDS III Priorities HRDSSA Commitments Goals of NSDS III SETA Performance Strategy-

Sector Objectives

1. Sector strategies (aligned to government and industry development strategies), programmes and projects developed with, and supported by, sector stakeholders

COMMITMENT ONE: We will urgently overcome the shortages in the supply of people with the priority skills needed for the successful implementation of current strategies to achieve accelerated economic growth

Goal: Establishing a credible institutional mechanism for skills planning Outcome: National need in relation to skills development is researched, documented and communicated to enable effective planning across all economic sectors

Strategic Objective: 1.1 and 1.3 of SSP and 1.2 1.1 of LP

Strategic Initiatives: 1,2, 3 of 1.1 1, 2 of 1.3 All of the CEOS

2. Relevant sector-based programmes addressing the needs of unemployed people and first-time entrants to the labour market will be developed and piloted by SETAs in partnership with the NSF

COMMITMENT TWO: We will increase the number of appropriately skilled people to meet the demands of our current and emerging economic and social development priorities

Goal: Increasing access to occupationally-directed programmes Outcomes: * Middle level skills needs are identified and addressed in all sectors 10,000 artisans per year qualify with relevant skills and find employment * High level national scarce skills needs are being addressed by work ready graduates from higher education institutions * Relevant research and development and innovation capacity is developed and innovative research projects established

Strategic Objective: 1.4 of LP 1.4 of LP Strategic Initiatives: 9300 by LG, defence and PSETA and other (check artisan-apprentive ratio)



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NSDS III Priorities HRDSSA Commitments Goals of NSDS III SETA Performance Strategy- Sector Objectives

3. Professional, vocational, technical and academic (PIVOTAL) programmes. These are programmes which provide a full occupationally-directed qualification

COMMITMENT THREE: We will ensure improved universal access to quality basic education and schooling (up to Grade 12) that is purposefully focused on: (a) achieving a dramatic improvement in the education outcomes for the poor; (b) equipping learners with optimal capacity for good citizenship; and (3) the pursuit of post-school vocational education and training for employment

Goal: Promoting the growth of a public FET college system that is responsive to sector, local, regional and national skills needs and priorities Outcomes: *The National Certificate (Vocational) and N-courses are recognised by employers as important base qualifications through which young people are obtaining additional vocational skills and work experience, entering the labour market with marketable skills, and obtaining employment *Partnerships between DHET, SETAs, employers, private providers and public FET colleges are resulting in increased capacity to meet industry needs throughout the country * The academic staff at colleges are able to offer relevant education and training of the required quality

Strategic Objective: 1.1 of LP Strategic Initiatives:

4. Programmes that contribute towards the revitalisation of vocational education and training, including the competence of lecturers and trainers to provide work-relevant education and training, and promote occupationally directed research and innovation.

COMMITMENT FOUR: We will urgently implement skills development programmes that are purposefully aimed at equipping recipients/citizens with requisite skills to overcome related scourges of poverty and unemployment

Goal: Addressing the low level of youth and adult language and numeracy skills to enable additional training Outcome: A national strategy is in place to provide all young people leaving school with an opportunity to engage in training or work experience, and improve their employability

Strategic Objective: 1.2 of LP 1.1 of LP

1.4 of LP

Strategic Initiatives:

5. Incentives for training and COMMITMENT FIVE: We will Goal: Encouraging better use of Strategic Objective:



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skills development capacity in the cooperative, NGO and trade union sectors, including community and worker education initiatives, contributing to effective training of youth and adults

ensure that young people have access to education and training that enhances opportunities and increases their chances of success in further vocational training and sustainable employment

workplace-based skills development Outcome: Training of employed workers addresses critical skills, enabling improved productivity, economic growth and the ability of the work force to adapt to change in the labour market

Strategic Initiatives:

6. Partnerships between public and private training providers, between providers and SETAs and between SETAs, addressing cross-sectoral and inter-sectoral needs

COMMITMENT SIX: We will improve the technological and innovation capability and outcomes within the public and private sectors to enhance our competitiveness in the global economy and to meet our human development priorities

Goal: Encouraging and supporting cooperatives, small enterprises, worker-initiated, NGO and community training initiatives Outcomes: *Cooperatives supported with skills training and development expand and contribute to sector economic and employment growth * Partnership projects to provide training and development support to small businesses are established in all sectors and their impact reported on * Worker, NGO and community-based education programmes are supported and their impact measured and reported on

Strategic Objective: NANA’s JANE’s Strategic Initiatives:

7. An increased focus on skills for rural development to support government’s prioritisation of rural development

COMMITMENT SEVEN: We will ensure that the public sector has the capability to meet the strategic priorities of the South African developmental state

Goal: Increasing public sector capacity for improved service delivery and supporting the building of a developmental state Outcomes: * A thorough analysis and reflection is conducted on provision of education and training within the public sector and the contribution of

Strategic Objective: 1.2 of SSP 1.4 of SSP NANA RORO’s number 1, HIV/AIDS FOCUS Starting to work toward rural



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the various role players * Education and training plans for the public sector are revised and programmes are implemented to build capacity

development focus across sections JANE”s pilot Strategic Initiatives: 1, 2 of 1.2 of SSP

8. COMMITMENT EIGHT: We will establish effective and efficient planning capabilities in the relevant departments and entities for the successful implementation of the HRDSSA II

Goal: Building career and vocational guidance Outcomes: * Career paths are mapped to qualifications in all sectors and sub-sectors, and communicated effectively, contributing to improved relevance of training and greater mobility and progression

Strategic Objective: 1.4 of SSP Support from Projects (northern cape project) in developing the career guidance LP Marketing and Communications Department Strategic Initiatives: 1 – 4 of 1.4 SSP

5.4 Conclusion



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REFERENCES APQC (American Productivity and Quality Centre) 1999. Measuring Institutional Performance Outcomes. Houston Texas. Barnow, Burt S. (2002), “Occupations and Skills in the United States: Projection Methods and Results through 2008”, in Neugart, Michael and Klaus Schömann, eds., Forecasting Labour Markets in OECD Countries: Measuring and Tackling Mismatches (Cornwall: MPG Books). Blom, K and Meyers, D. 2003. Quality indicators in Vocational Education and Training. ANTA. de Grip, Andries and Hans Heijke (1998), “Beyond Manpower Planning: ROA’s Labour Market Model and its Forecasts to 2002”, ROA-W-1998/6E (Maastricht: ROA). Haskel, Jonathan and Richard Holt (1999), “Anticipating Future Skill Needs: Can it be Done? Does it Need to be Done?”, Skills Task Force, Research Paper 1 (September). Heijke, Hans, ed. (1994), Forecasting the Labour Market by Occupation and Education: The Forecasting Activities of Three European Labour Market Research Institutes (Boston, Dordrecht and London: Kluwer Academic Publishers). Lin, D. 2000. Training Design Factors Influencing Transfer of Training to the Workplace in an International Context. Journal of Vocational Education and Training Vol 52 No 2 Machin, M 2002. Planning, managing and optimizing transfer of training. PhD, University of Southern Queensland. Marshall, R. 1999. Return on Investment Analysis of Education and Training in the Construction Industry. University of Texas. Ridout, L; Dutneal, R; Hummel, K; Smith, C. 2002. Factors Influencing the Implementation of Training in the Workplace. NCVER Report, ANTA. Subedi, B. 2005. Emerging Trends of Research on Transfer of Learning. International Education Journal Vol 5, No 4.



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Willems, E.J.T.A., A. de Grip, (1993), Forecasting Replacement Demand by Occupation and Education, International Journal of Forecasting 9, pp. 173-185. Wilson, R.A. (1993),Modelling and Forecasting the Structure of Employment in the United Kingdom, in: Heijke, H. (ed.), Forecasting the Labour Market by Occupation and Education, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston/Dordrecht/London.

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