Download or read book Skills Shortages in South Africa written by Johan Erasmus and published by HSRC Publishers. This book was released on 2009 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Skills shortages in South Africa are widely seen as a major obstacle to the achievement of targeted economic growth rates. Yet there is some dispute as to the nature and extent of these shortages, given the large number of unemployed graduates. The case studies presented here explore the question of shortage in nine key professions and artisanal trades, and find evidence of skills scarcity in most fields. The case studies provide insight into the reasons for shortages and surpluses in relation to South Africa's own context and history. They also consider the international market for knowledge and skills, in which South African qualifications are highly prized. The monograph emanates from a study on sector specific research and related skills requirements commissioned by the South African Department of Labour in 2006. It formed part of a wider research project on scarce and critical skills related to the National Skills Development Strategy and the National Industrial Policy Framework of 2007, for which the Human Siences Research Council led a research consortium comprising the Development Policy Research Unit at the University of Cape Town and the Sociology of Work Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand.