Career Guidance and Training Services for Digital Career Pathways in South Africa

Project Description DS4JI The International Monetary Fund's report in March 2023 highlighted the deteriorating growth prospects in South Africa, emphasizing the need for rapid solutions to the energy crisis, investments in a just transition, and plans to reduce structural unemployment and gender disparity. Despite economic recovery post-COVID-19, unemployment remains high, especially among youth and women, contributing to social and political instability. The ongoing digital transformation offers job opportunities, particularly in the ICT sector, with initiatives like the National Digital and Future Skills Strategy aiming to develop digital skills. However, the lack of structured career pathways limits job prospects, especially for women. Factors contributing to this issue include the lack of identified and developed career pathways relevant to the digital economy, insufficient information on career pathways for vocational students, and a lack of integration of digital skills training into career pathways. Addressing these causes through professional career guidance, further digital skills training, entrepreneurship support and employment transition services can lead to positive change. Leveraging the learnings from its predecessor the "Digital Skills for Jobs and Income Project", the "Digital Skills for Jobs and Income II Project" (DS4JI II) is commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in the period of 01. April 2024 to 31. March 2027. Its objective is to enhance employment opportunities for young individuals in the rapidly evolving South African digital economy. This iteration is set to refine the integration of support services, delivering a seamless navigation for youth transitioning from Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and youth that is neither in education, employment or training (NEET) into the digital labour market. The project activities are structured into following key output areas: - Output 1: Professional Career Orientation and Guidance: Provide vocational students at selected TVET Colleges with career planning support and information on digital career pathways. - Output 2: Demand-oriented Training Measures: Offer targeted training measures that meet the demands of the digital economy and supports job readiness. - Output 3: Transition to Employment or Self-employment: Assist young people in navigating the move from training to working environments or starting their own digital businesses. - Output 4: Development of Evidence-based Digital Career Pathways: Establish clear, demand-oriented career paths in the digital sector, leveraging labour market analyses. The DS4JI II project is implemented together with the South African Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) and guided by the National Digital and Future Skills Strategy and Implementation Plan.