Indwe 4ir lab launch set to combat unemployment

Ekurhuleni East TVET College launched its state-of-the-art Indwe 4IR Lab on March 12. The lab is designed to challenge youth unemployment by altering the TVET educational system by implementing innovative programmes.

The launch of the lab is a result of the collaboration between Ekurhuleni East College, the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (merSETA) and Festo Didactic.

The deputy minister of Higher Education, Science, and Innovation, Buti Manamela, was present to cut the ribbon, tour the 4IR laboratory and deliver the keynote speech.

“Today is a significant milestone, it’s momentous as an occasion that represents a decisive step in our ongoing efforts to reposition our post-school education and training sector,” Manamela said.

Manamela emphasised that the skills acquired in the lab will help address the country’s socio-economic challenges and steer the economy from being resource-driven to being knowledge-driven.

“It has forced us to radically rethink the nature of skills, the nature of jobs, the nature of the workplaces including the fact that it has rendered some skills jobs obsolete. It has also given birth to new and exciting industries, especially in such fields as artificial intelligence,” he said about the emergence of the 4IR.

The 4IR lab offers skills in areas such as 3D printing, robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT) and advanced wireless technologies.

The college’s principal, Happy Sibande, revealed that the 4IR lab will not only benefit their students but the community at large.

“We must also leverage the Indwe 4IR lab for community capacity development by opening our doors to the broader community,” Sibande said.

“We can provide access to digital literacy programs, workshops, and training sessions,” she added.

Ekurhuleni East TVET College is the second beneficiary of the 4IR initiative, which will continue to be launched in other TVET colleges.

The SRC president, Nteboheng Tsotetsi, delivered a message of support where she remarked that many young people still don’t have access to free internet services therefore making their learning experience more challenging.

“For many, limited access to devices and data poses a serious challenge. We often take for granted that these resources that we perceive as a necessity are not a reality for all,” Tsotetsi said.

“We are proud to be part of an institution that took a position to bridge this gap through the Indwe 4IR lab,” she added.

The 4IR lab is an initiative that will greatly benefit young people in Ekurhuleni by giving them access to programs that will not only improve their learning experience but their livelihoods as well.