Getting skills right: South Africa

The OECD report, Getting skills right: South Africa, "identifies effective strategies to tackle skills imbalances in South Africa. It provides an assessment of practices and policies in the following areas: the collection and use of information on skill needs to foster a better alignment of skills acquisitions with labour market needs; education and training policies targeting skills development and investment for individuals and employers; job creation policies to develop skills through on-the-job learning; and policies facilitating the entry of migrants with skills that are in demand. The assessment is based on country visits, desk research and data analysis conducted by the OECD secretariat."

Notwithstanding the efforts of the South African Government and a range of private sector stakeholders to tackle skills imbalances, some challenges remain. The educational system could be further improved, in terms of developing both basic skills and technical skills, with a specific focus on historically disadvantaged individuals. More training options are needed for the employed and the unemployed, and this training should be relevant for improving the employability and career progress of participants. Several governance aspects need to be addressed as well. A lack of coordination and co-operation between relevant stakeholders, such as government departments, training institutions and employers, hinders the development of effective skills policies and their implementation. The implementation of policies is often impeded by a lack of clear goals, a missing or underdeveloped monitoring and evaluation framework, and the instability of policy development."

(Available in OECDILibrary, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264278745-en)