Browsing by Author "University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg"

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    An assessment of skills supply and demand for renewable energy, energy efficiency, and regional energy integration
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2022) Centre for Researching Education & Labour (REAL); University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
    The SADC region relies heavily on energy produced from coal and water and has grappled with an energy crisis over the years, seen through insufficient and inefficient energy supply. This crisis is mostly a result of a changing climate, including droughts, outdated infrastructure, and the depletion of natural resources. These natural resources include coal and gas, and their use for power generation further contributes to climate change, who’s impacts are being faced globally. There has therefore been a desire and a call to shift towards renewable energy (RE) in the SADC region, which has the resources and conditions to make this shift. This is driven by the SADC Protocol on Energy and the various national policies. The SADC Protocol on Energy (SADC 20) identifies a number of strategic plans over the last 10 years which build on previous policies. These include “the Regional Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan 2020 to 2030 (SADC, 2020), the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Action Plan 2016 to 2030 (SADC, 2016), the SADC Industrial Energy Efficiency Programme and the development of the Regional Gas Master Plan” (SADC, 1996). Implementation has occurred at different rates in the various member states, and the 2018 SADC Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Status Report states that “Since 2015, SADC Member States have greatly increased their commitment to renewable energy and energy efficiency, including important innovations to stimulate mini-grids and distributed renewable energy” (SADC, 2018). This is also the case in regional integration as per the SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2020–2030 (SADC 2020) and through the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) and its regional electricity plans, trading platforms, and policy and regulatory alignment initiatives (SAPP, 2017) together with the SADC Regional Electricity Regulatory Association (RERA, 2022). This transition to RE, however, needs to be just, thereby ensuring that the current workforce is protected and that the skills ecosystem is prepared not only to respond to current demands but those required to transition to a more just and resilient energy system.
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    Connecting skills planning to provision
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Centre for Researching Education & Labour (REAL); University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
    Skills planning and development for the public sector are intrinsically linked to the state’s capacity to deliver on its social service and development mandates.
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    Linking knowledge, education and work: exploring occupations
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2022) Centre for Researching Education & Labour (REAL); University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
    To have an occupational identity is to occupy a social and moral as well as economic position, to have mastered bodies of knowledge (both theoretical and practical), and earned a jurisdiction over practice.
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    Where do competency and competency frameworks fit into building a capable and competent state that delivers?
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Centre for Researching Education and Labour (REAL); University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
    In the wake of Cabinet approving the 2022 National Framework for the Professionalisation of the Public Service, the debate has intensified around transforming the Public Service Sector (PSS) to contribute to a professional, ethical and capable developmental state. Therefore, a renewed focus has been on professionalising the PSS with competent and skilled employees. The first question to answer is how the sector assesses whether public servants are competent and performing in line with specific behaviours linked to their roles and functions.
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    Why management is not an occupation: implications for professionalising the public service sector
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) Centre for Researching Education & Labour (REAL); University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
    The government’s aim to create a professional, ethical and capable developmental state rests on competent public sector employees driving service delivery. The National Framework for the Professionalisation of the Public Service includes an approach to appointing managers. The approach includes how managers will be assessed for competencies, trained, and upskilled. The critical question is how the public service sector understands and defines management.