Skills development could gain prominence on BBBEE scorecard

Business could see greater emphasis being placed on skills development in the BBBEE scorecard based on recent comments by ANC Minister for Higher Education and Training, Blade Nzimande. ”Companies doing business with the government stand to lose out on lucrative tenders if they do not commit to skills development when they apply for government tenders,” Nzimande said in an interview with the Sunday Times last week. Stringent conditions will be put in place to force companies that have been awarded tenders to commit themselves to skills development and transfer, he added. According to Global Trade Training’s Charles Dey, at present the maximum score from the BBBEE scorecard skills development pillar is 15%. “Judging by the tone of the article, greater emphasis could be placed on this element of the scorecard,” he said. “At the same time as Government is becoming increasingly demanding in this area, the dynamic environment of change necessitates high degrees of competence from every individual at every level who is involved in international logistics and supply chain management,” he said. “This applies equally to freight forwarders, importers and exporters.” And as an accredited provider, Dey believes GTT is in a strong position to service the industry’s requirements. “We have a Teta-linked learner management and reporting system, a flexible blend of face-to-face training and e-learning and an extensive community of experts. These combine to assist companies in meeting their competency needs while at the same time maximising BBBEE scorecard points.” GTT has also invested in the resources required to take companies through all the steps needed to acquire maximum BBBEE scorecard points, says Dey, “also making the training as cost-effective as possible through Teta funding. “We have created an integrated structure for each company to acquire much-needed competencies while at the same time meeting government’s increasingly stringent BBBEE demands and attracting the maximum possible Teta subsidies.”