Economic Development MEC Makalo Mohale says the introduction of a special programme on entrepreneurial development by the Central University of Technology (CUT) could be a strategic solution towards producing graduates who will not limit themselves to looking for work but could also create jobs.
Speaking during the launch of the CUT Entrepreneurship Development Unit (CUT-EDU) on Friday, Mohale said the new centre places the institution in a favourable position to take advantage of new opportunities and speed up implementation of its plans to be a leading university of technology in the country by 2030.
“This launch must be seen as an opportune moment to dig deeper into things that will help the university and the region develop a greater appreciation of the 21st century challenges facing higher education,” said Mohale.
South Africa’s tertiary education system has been criticised over the years for failing to produce graduates with entrepreneurial skills so they can start their own businesses and create employment.
“It is my hope that this unit will create a critical strategic position which will lead the university’s academic division into the future of innovation and entrepreneurship education for higher education in this country,” said Mohale.
“As government, we are privileged to see how this new thinking of entrepreneurship can be aligned with our plans.
“We have realised that the fatal constraint to social economic development in the country is skills shortage.
“We have no hope of contributing to the socio-economic needs of the country as well as the province if we do not urgently overcome the challenge of skills shortage in the Free State.”
The MEC said the government is committed to improving “the lives of our people for the better, promoting educational growth and developing the youth in line with the required capacity of the province”.
The CUT-EDU will offer post-graduate studies, including MPhil in coursework or research up to doctoral level in entrepreneurship management and monitoring and evaluation for the 2023 academic year.
The programme is designed to equip participants with skills to start and grow businesses and become self-dependent while producing astute entrepreneurship consultants, educators, scholars, and legislators.
In his opening remarks, CUT acting vice-chancellor Professor Alfred Nguwi said while the fourth industrial revolution is fast taking over everyday life, innovation and entrepreneurship are not going to be automated or run by robots, hence the university’s focus on the two, among others.
“There is no doubt in my mind that through entrepreneurship education, training, consulting and other related activities, the CUT-EDU will contribute immensely to the sustainable socio-economic prosperity of our students, staff, local communities and the Free State province generally,” said Nguwi.
The dean of management sciences at the university, Professor Albert Strydom, said recent studies, including the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2019/20, have emphasised the importance of entrepreneurship for organisational survival.
“It’s not only institutions in the private sector but also universities that must be re-organised with entrepreneurial activities at the forefront,” he told the gathering.
“In the Free State province, we have the advantage that there is a vibrant township economy which really brings an opportunity to the CUT to tap into the entrepreneurial spirit by harnessing local talent to create sustainable start-ups – one of the most important objectives of the EDU.”
CUT-EDU director Professor Dennis Yao Dzansi said the programme touches on both entrepreneurial theory applications and practicals through teaching and research.
“Students must come up with what we call a bankable business plan . . . using the scientific . . . research methodology. You should go out there into the market, do research to come out with a business plan that is ready for the market,” he explained.
Dzansi said the unit will also offer short-learning programmes especially for young people and women to help them use innovative education and technology in entrepreneurship and other socio-economic development-related fields.
“From next year, all our students, starting with those in the first year, will be exposed to this module (short learning programme) in entrepreneurship,” he said.
“The idea is that by the time they exit (the university) they should have completed this programme.
“One of the prerequisites is that they should produce business plans worth executing.”
Dzansi said the pilot advanced diploma has had an overwhelming response.
He said they had targeted only 35 students but eventually enrolled 71 after rejecting several others. – Staff Reporter