June is youth month and its commemoration also carries a historical association with education. The South African Students Congress (SASCO) is among the student organisations that have acknowledged this by calling for a higher intake at the country’s universities and TVET institutions.
In a statement issued on Friday, the student organisation lamented the extent to which shortages have contributed to South Africa’s youth unemployment.
The crisis of youth unemployment is largely characterised by skills mismatch or lack thereof. The National Development plan set a target of about 5% increase for the student intake in institutions of higher learning and TVETs colleges, however, we observe a decline in the students funded by NSFAS when we compare the current financial year with the previous.
SASCO went on to say that this is despite the fact that the demand for higher education space grows every year as more students progress from secondary school.
Progressive Youth Alliance (PYA) also called for free, compulsory and quality education for all. The student organisation also pointed out that lack of adequate transformation in higher learning institutions is among the contributing factors to the non-accessibility of these institutions.
