Students from the IT, Accounting, Internal Auditing, and Marketing Departments have received a major boost following a generous million-Rand donation by the BANKSETA.

The CPUT/ BANKSETA Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Initiative aims to bolster the university’s commitment to give students the hands-on, practical skills needed to thrive in the working world.

The donation will be channelled through the Centre for Community Engagement and Work Integrated Learning, who are tasked with creating and sustaining experiential learning opportunities for students in the workplace.

The funds will incentivise businesses to give students on-the-job training and mentorship and the all-important exposure to the working world that sets our graduates apart. Co-operative Education manager, Fundiswa Nofemela, says she’s delighted at this collaboration between the university and the BANKSETA.“Work experience is often the determining factor in whether or not new graduates find employment.  Now many more students will have access to such experience, which is an invaluable asset in today’s tough job markets. “The initiative is yet another successful project created and driven by the Advancement Department.Director Milcho Damianov believes the unique partnership has enormous potential to shorten the painful journey of graduates to the workplace.But, he says, the benefits extend to employers as well, as they have increased access to high-calibre, skilled graduates to meet their recruitment needs.“It’s definitely a win-win situation – and we believe this is just the start. We have now created a formidable platform for exploring partnerships with different industries, helping both the marketplace and our students. “

Written by Janyce Weintrob

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Ululations were the order of the day as CPUT and BANKSETA once again showed their commitment to boosting students to reach their highest capability when they handed out certificates and tablets to 100 matriculants who were part of the Digital Literacy Project during the BANKSETA Skills for Future Awards ceremony held at Cofimvaba Senior Secondary School recently.

Earlier this year, CPUT launched the Digital Literacy Project with R1.5 million from BANKSETA and Cofimvaba Junior Secondary School, in Cofimvaba, Eastern Cape, was selected because it gave CPUT 102 students in 2022 (30% of their 2021 matriculants). Advancement Department Director, Calvin Maseko said the school is CPUT’s biggest feeder school in the Eastern Cape. He said the project provided digital literacy skills to 100 matriculants and that Bank SETA gave CPUT another R1.5 million to implement the project in 2023.

Maseko said the project was part of BANKSETA’s Skills for the Future Programme. “Skills for the Future aims at providing an opportunity to economically disadvantaged Grade 12 scholars in rural Limpopo and Eastern Cape to acquire demand driven skills such as digital literacy and ICT to enable them to gain entrance in higher education institutions, to pursue careers that support the scarce and critical skills required in the Banking and Alternative Banking Sector in line with BANKSETA Sector Skills Plan, to increase the chances of employability and respond to the urgent need of 4th Industrial Revolution to local and global banking sector.”

The learners acquired skills such as word processing, cybersecurity, digital banking, coding and work readiness. Seventy one percent (71%) of the learners were females.

He said the project was part of the effort of CPUT to increase its footprint in community engagement, whereby the university reaches out to communities and schools where it sources its students to implement community development projects. “CPUT was a project manager, and identified the school, provided the skill and procured the needed material,” Maseko remarked.

Speaking at the event, Dr Kuhle Zwakala, Lecturer: Marketing Department, said CPUT and BANKSETA have a very long relationship. Zwakala said: “We as universities graduate students who do not get jobs and BANKSETA plays a pivotal role in closing that gap and making sure that we produce graduates that have skills that are needed by the industry.”

The Keynote speaker, Nobuzwe Mangcu, Regional Manager, BANKSETA (Eastern Cape), thanked Maseko and his team for keeping their promise to finish the programme by December. “We are looking forward to next year’s programme. We are available if you need funding.”

Mangcu also provided career guidance to a group of leaners present at the fully packed event. Her address to the leaners focused on choices, alternatives, and possibilities at their disposal. She also urged the leaners to stay away from criminal activities while studying as that might negatively affect their future employment ambitions. “Avoid criminal records while studying, otherwise no employment at BANKSETA. Avoid peer pressure and think on your own. You must respect your parents. Make your parents proud because they have sacrificed a lot for you,” Mangcu urged the leaners.

“I beg you not to give up on life.”

The overwhelmed school principal, Naniswa Sabata, said her “transformation values” have been boosted by the CPUT and BANKSETA partnership. “They have added another source of values to what I am pursuing, which is social transformation. Now I have other pillars of strength in changing people’s lives for the better.”

Addressing the learners, Maseko said: “This programme is not only about education but for community development. “We are waiting for you at our university.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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The Bank Sector Education and Training Authority (BankSETA) has awarded R1.19 million to the Graduate Centre for Management’s Business Incubation and Innovation Centre (BIIC) as a research partner to conduct cutting-edge research.

Lecturer Judith Smith said the Centre’s partnership with the SETA will run up to March 2023 and that the former will conduct research on skills analysis of FinTechs and how they bridge skills gaps in the banking and alternative banking sectors and strengthen synergies between the banking sector and FinTechs.

Smith added that the other area of research is how skills development contributes to the transformation of the banking and alternative banking sectors. “How can the SETA expand access to post-schooling education and training to help transform the banking and alternative banking sector,” she elaborated.

She described the BIIC as an academic incubator to actualise the vision of smartness propagated by Vice-Chancellor, Prof Chris Nhlapo, as a measure that sets CPUT apart from our counterparts, and that it told the story of how CPUT is grappling with the phenomenal opportunities presented by the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Dr Michael Twum-Darko, Head of BIIC and the Acting Head of Graduate Centre for Management, said the competency that was established to re-curriculate the Diploma in Banking, PGDip in Digital Business, Bachelor of Business Informatics and Doctor of Business Informatics programmes would be used to conduct the research for the SETA. Twum-Darko encouraged interested researchers to contact him if they want to participate in the research.      

The Centre has been identified by Caring4Hope, a Non-Profit Organisation, as one of the incubators in South Africa to turn young South Africans into entrepreneurs. “The Next Big Thing” is a project initiated by Caring4Hope to develop 2 000 South African youth in a year to become job creators for the next three years at an annual cost of R15 million.

The scope of the three-year agreement is for the BIIC to provide theoretical training for entrepreneurial skills development in the form of online coaching and mentoring of selected youth across the country.

Twum-Darko said the contract stipulated that a team of facilitators and assessors meet on a regular basis with the Project’s Coordinator to monitor all aspects of the progress of the students and submit reports to Caring4Hope when available.

Furthermore, Caring4Hope will be responsible for the management of the programme, record- keeping of assessments and forwarding of records and necessary correspondence to all stakeholders including the financial partners.

Written by Kwanele Butana

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The Banking Sector Education and Training Authority (BANKSETA) Chief Executive Officer, Eubert Mashabane, has announced that it will invest R10.3 million towards the Work Integrated learning programme in IT-related qualifications for 2022/3.

Speaking virtually at the CERPIA SAP Skills Development Programme graduation ceremony held at the Auditorium at Bellville campus, Mashabane said: “This investment is to fund about 140 students from this particular institution. The Banking sector remains a pillar of our economic growth, but we are convinced that we could achieve additional growth if we produce more graduates such as the ones who [are] graduating today. We remain committed to producing a pipeline of young people contributing to our economic sector.”

He said that when BANKSETA partnered with CPUT, one of the long-term objectives was to address the country's high unemployment rate challenge. The second objective was to create an environment where learning and education is a partnership of mutual commitment “where we both pursue wisdom, we pursue knowledge, we pursue understanding that the development of expertise and skills are  of paramount importance as well as to embrace appropriate values and values among our youth.”

Addressing the guests, Vice-Chancellor Prof Chris Nhlapo said: “Today, we celebrate your achievements, marking the successful completion of your SAP course. At this graduation, we celebrate the 70 students who have completed the SAP course.   The SAP Course is one of the world's leading software developers for business process management (automation – audit findings). SAP offers a comprehensive portfolio of leading cloud-based ERP [Enterprise resource planning] solutions and tools to meet the needs of businesses…”

Nhlapo said SAP skills are in demand in South Africa and globally – “Glocalised vs Globalised”. “It has been proven that adding SAP courses enhances your competitive advantage and enables you to stand out in a crowd,” he continued.

“Thank you to BANKSETA, and long live our relationship, which started in CPUT in 2013, funding work integrated learning. Indeed, without BANKSETA’s millions of Rands, we wouldn’t be here today celebrating your accomplishments.

“Thank you to BANKSETA, and long live our collaboration and community engagement, which is alive and well (third mission of any university - Strengthening the social ownership of university -social contract/compact).”

Mashabane said: “Congratulations to the  BANKSETA graduates who have made this day a very memorable one for all of us and through whose commitment the BANKSETA and the CPUT partnership has resulted in such an achievement bearing such impressionable results. It’s a great pleasure to join you in this graduation ceremony, at which we acknowledge and celebrate you as our VIPs today. Apart from the joy emanating from this graduation ceremony, we indeed have to emphasise that you are acknowledged as the future drivers of the SA economy, and we recognise you as the leaders of the future.”

Dr Diane Bell from the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences said: “I would like to thank Eubert Mashabane and the BANKSETA for the sponsorship of the CERPIA SAP Skills Development Programme, without whom none of this would have been possible. We appreciate your support and partnering with us to develop the skill sets of our students, which the Fourth Industrial Revolution and future knowledge revolutions demand.”
Student Dewrin Cookson said: “On behalf of the students, I would like to take this moment to thank CPUT, BANKSETA and last but not least, the Advancement Department for providing us with such an amazing opportunity. Not only the funding but also the skills development programmes to help us advance our career aspirations.”  

Written by Aphiwe Boyce

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The Dean of the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences (FBMS), Prof Paul Green, recently heaped praise on a celebration of academic achievement, innovation, and the relentless pursuit of excellence by the CPUT staff members and students who have completed the SAP S/4 HANA course as well as candidates from our industrial partner Shoprite.

Green was speaking at the SAP S/4 HANA graduation ceremony, recently organised by the Centre for Enterprise Research Partnership and Innovation in Africa (CERPiA) and the Advancement Department and held at the Cape Town Hotel School. “It is with great pleasure that we gather here today to honour the dedication and hard work of our graduating students who have successfully completed their SAP S/4 HANA certification under the auspices of the Centre for Enterprise Research, Partnership, and Innovation in Africa (CERPIA),” said Green.

CERPIA is an institutional centre established by Vice-Chancellor Prof Chris Nhlapo. CERPIA through CPUT is a member of the SAP University Alliance (UA) since 2009, which seeks to transfer theoretical and practical scarce digital business systems skills to university students in preparation of entering the job market. These digital business systems skills are driven by Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) principles using SAP Software as a tool. CERPIA education partners are SAP University Alliance, University Competent Centre (UCC) and the industry partners.

CERPIA SAP education manager and trainer, Jerry Ansen, said the purpose of these courses was to equip student and staff with the knowledge and skills required to effectively use SAP software for managing business operations and processes. Ansen added that the courses are for students and staff to master SAP ERP skills, and enhance their digital business skills and to enhance students employability.

He said BANKSETA sponsored 38 students of which 31 graduated and ETDPSETA sponsored 29 staff of which 23 graduated. The SAP programmes were introduced to CPUT by Ansen, and he has been the pillar behind the skills development of staff and students since 2009.

All students are welcome to attend the courses as there is no selection criteria, “We depend on funding for students from Advancement Department”. “Graduates get to learn 21st-century ICT digital skills, be empowered to take current job opportunities and be competitive in the market space.” Addressing the graduates, Ansen said: “Congratulations!! And I wish you all the best in your professional digital business skills careers.”

31 CPUT students graduated from SAP S4 HANA in:

• Human Capital Management
• Financial Accounting
• Materials Management
• Master Data Management
• Project Management

There were three staff members in SAP S/4 HANA – TS410 and eight candidates from Shoprite Group ltd and SAP S/4 HANA- Materials Management. CERPIA, as the driving force behind advancing digital business skills, plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of “our students and the broader community,” Green remarked. “As part of the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences… We are committed to equipping our students with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in their chosen fields.”

He added that through the FBMS integration of SAP skills into their curricula and the provision of certifications, “we empower our students to stand out in a highly competitive industry”. “This strategic focus on SAP not only enhances graduate employability but also ensures that our students are well-equipped to meet the evolving demands of the digital economy. It is this emphasis on practical, industry-relevant skills that makes our graduates more marketable and sought after by employers.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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