KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Premier Dr Zweli Mkhize has revealed that the Public Service, both at national and provincial level, is the largest employer in the country. At national level it employs 1.2 million workers and at provincial level it employs in the region of 180 000 workers. The Public Service is large and offers many career opportunities.
“However, the public service is also faced with the challenge of not being able to recruit and appoint people in certain occupations. This leaves critical posts vacant, which impacts on service delivery. Many learners lack information on government, what government does and what jobs one can find in the public service,” Mkhize explains.
He says one of the key challenges facing government is whether departments can take advantage of the large number of young people who are able and willing to work. In addition to providing them with education, training and skills development we have to create a supporting and enabling environment that will help young people in finding work that they find stimulating and which helps fulfil their aspirations. Young people lack the skills to find the study direction that they want to take and the career they want to pursue and need to be supported.
He notes: “If we are going to maintain a professional and excellent Public Service we have to ensure that working in the Public Service becomes a calling motivated by the need to serve and for it to be a career of choice. We have to ensure that there is a constant supply of skilled and capable graduates. Consequently, initiatives such as career education and development, career exhibitions, internship and graduate development programmes are essential to this.”
He further points out: “It is important that young people see career development as a continuous process of obtaining and processing information about who they are and educational alternatives and options that are available and suitable for them. The process of educating young people about careers is a significant responsibility for all of us. Access to information on careers and career development must be a high priority.”
Within the KZN Public Service, based on critical and scarce skills list of the departments, KZN government requires skilled people in the following broad occupational categories:
- Management – internal auditor, economist, financial manager, actuarial scientist, supply chain managers, etc.
- Health sciences – e.g. Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, radiographers, etc.
- Science and Engineering – e.g. Agricultural engineers, civil engineers, electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, architects, quantity surveyors, etc.
- Agriculture – e.g. Agricultural engineers, agricultural technicians, agricultural scientists.
- Social Sciences – e.g. Social Workers, Educators, Social Auxiliary Workers, Archivists, language practitioners, etc.
While learners at the school level are in the process of choosing careers, unemployed youth are encouraged to look at opportunities that are being provided through interventions such as learner ships.
For KZN and a country to develop its manufacturing and engineering sector it needs artisans such as electricians, plumbers, mechanics, panel beaters and welders.
