By Lebone Rodah Mosima

The Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), in partnership with Services SETA, has secured R5 million to support the further refurbishment and upgrading of the Emlandeleni Community Learning Centre in Ndwedwe, KwaZulu-Natal.

DHET deputy minister Dr Mimmy Gondwe announced the investment during a visit to the centre on Monday.

“Today is not only about announcing key infrastructure upgrades to Emlandeleni Community Learning Centre. It is about restoring dignity, reclaiming opportunity, and affirming to the people of Ndwedwe that you have not been forgotten,” Gondwe said.

She said the centre formed part of an effort to repurpose underutilised public infrastructure for community development.

Following the rationalisation of schools by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Basic Education, a number of facilities were transferred to the department.

“Through the support of the national Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, this facility has been refurbished and prepared for its new purpose and is now operating as the Emlandeleni Community Learning Centre,” Gondwe said.

The centre serves out-of-school youth and adults who are not in employment, education or training, and is intended to give people a second chance to learn and gain skills.

“Across our country, there are many young people and adults, who for different reasons, did not complete their schooling. Some were held back by poverty, whilst others were held back by circumstances, and others were held back by the responsibilities they had to carry too early in life. But none of them should be written off,” she said.

“Learning centres such as this one exist to say that it is never too late to learn, never too late to rebuild, and never too late to participate meaningfully in the economy of your community and your country.”

She said South Africa could not afford to have a generation disconnected from learning, skills and opportunity.

“That is why CET Colleges are not a ‘by the way’ or a side initiative. They are central to how we respond to unemployment, inequality, and the NEET crisis.”

The centre and its satellite sites have enrolled more than 1,000 students this year.

According to Gondwe, the enrolments were across “a range of academic, skills, and occupational programmes, ranging from foundational learning to practical training in areas such as workplace readiness, first aid, baking, sewing, and other critical income-generating skills”.

Gondwe said access alone was not enough.

“What we provide, as the PSET system, must be meaningful and impactful. It must build confidence, restore dignity, and create real pathways into employment, entrepreneurship, or further education,” she said.

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