NCCI worried about skills shortage

THE Education Training Sector Improvement Programme (ETSIP) should be implemented speedily to ensure that the skills shortage in the country is effectively addressed.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI), Tarah Shaanika, made this call in an interview with Nampa this week. He said the shortage of skills continues to affect the operations of upcoming businesses in the country.ETSIP is an initiative by the Ministry of Education whose primary purpose is to substantially enhance the education sector’s contribution to the attainment of strategic development goals and facilitate the transition to a knowledge-based economy.”We want this (ETSIP) to be implemented fully to ensure good results and improve on the pass rate.Therefore Government should avail resources by all means to ensure that ETSIP becomes operational,” he said.Meanwhile, Shaanika indicated that NCCI has suggested to Government that certain provisions must be made for the private sectors to import skills.”It is difficult for a company to operate without certain skills.And should it be that there is no expertise in the country who can do that specific job, then one can opt for possible alternatives because if a company cannot operate well because of lack of expertise then it cannot compete with others, be it local or international,” Shaanika said.On the direction of the NCCI this year, he said focus would be directed towards implementing a strategic plan, which the chamber adopted last year to guide its operations for the next five years.The five-year strategic plan calls for, among other things, identification of new ways to reach all businesses in the country, especially those at the grassroots level, to identify their needs as well as strengthen the chamber’s capacity.The chamber will also focus on the implementation of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Tool Kit.According to him, this toolkit, which was adopted last year, was designed to enhance the development of upcoming businesses in the SADC Region.It therefore requires each SADC member to implement it this year to ensure that all small businesses in the region are unified and speak with one voice.According to Shaanika, South Africa will become the first member to launch its toolkit later this month and Namibia will launch its in March.”The toolkit entails the provision of information to SMEs on how to run their finances, how to sell their products and many other elements that are needed to ensure business success,” he said.All SADC members are expected to implement this toolkit by August this year.NCCI has already identified areas where it will start with the implementation this year.These are Windhoek, the coastal towns and some parts of northern Namibia.Other parts of the country will be accommodated from next year.Shaanika, who also serves on the board of the Association of SADC Chambers and Commerce and Industry, said: “All SADC countries will be using the same toolkit and we want to mentor 50 SMEs with this toolkit here in Namibia,” Shaanika said.The SADC SMEs Toolkit also makes provision for training for small businesses.NampaHe said the shortage of skills continues to affect the operations of upcoming businesses in the country.ETSIP is an initiative by the Ministry of Education whose primary purpose is to substantially enhance the education sector’s contribution to the attainment of strategic development goals and facilitate the transition to a knowledge-based economy.”We want this (ETSIP) to be implemented fully to ensure good results and improve on the pass rate.Therefore Government should avail resources by all means to ensure that ETSIP becomes operational,” he said.Meanwhile, Shaanika indicated that NCCI has suggested to Government that certain provisions must be made for the private sectors to import skills.”It is difficult for a company to operate without certain skills.And should it be that there is no expertise in the country who can do that specific job, then one can opt for possible alternatives because if a company cannot operate well because of lack of expertise then it cannot compete with others, be it local or international,” Shaanika said.On the direction of the NCCI this year, he said focus would be directed towards implementing a strategic plan, which the chamber adopted last year to guide its operations for the next five years.The five-year strategic plan calls for, among other things, identification of new ways to reach all businesses in the country, especially those at the grassroots level, to identify their needs as well as strengthen the chamber’s capacity.The chamber will also focus on the implementation of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Tool Kit.According to him, this toolkit, which was adopted last year, was designed to enhance the development of upcoming businesses in the SADC Region.It therefore requires each SADC member to implement it this year to ensure that all small businesses in the region are unified and speak with one voice.According to Shaanika, South Africa will become the first member to launch its toolkit later this month and Namibia will launch its in March.”The toolkit entails the provision of information to SMEs on how to run their finances, how to sell their products and many other elements that are needed to ensure business success,” he said.All SADC members are expected to implement this toolkit by August this year.NCCI has already identified areas where it will start with the implementation this year.These are Windhoek, the coastal towns and some parts of northern Namibia.Other parts of the country will be accommodated from next year.Shaanika, who also serves on the board of the Association of SADC Chambers and Commerce and Industry, said: “All SADC countries will be using the same toolkit and we want to mentor 50 SMEs with this toolkit here in Namibia,” Shaanika said.The SADC SMEs Toolkit also makes provision for training for small businesses.Nampa