Graduates are our new gold

THE great tragedy about modern South Africa is not that it or its people are short of opportunity. Of that, we have plenty. Our downfall, ultimately, is very likely to be our growing inability to take advantage of the incredible human and natural resources with which we have been blessed, and to turn them into long-term benefits. This is the nub of our skills crisis. And it‘s not getting better as a survey conducted by the Weekend Post clearly indicates. Nearly half of the 200 university students we approached are planning to leave the country upon completion of their studies. They cite crime, political infighting, corruption and uncertain job prospects as the factors driving them away from their homeland – and many may never return.

If their disillusionment is taken as broadly representative it means that efforts to build and retain skills and attract back those already abroad, are failing.

Also worrying are signs that emigration is becoming a common aspiration among students and graduates of all backgrounds and it is no longer merely a symptom of the political impotence that once afflicted disgruntled whites.

In a global economy, skills flow freely from one place to another where they might be more profitably deployed.

Yet the investment we make in the education of our own is too costly to be easily offset by incoming skills and since the education of all of these young people is heavily subsidised by the public purse, our hard-earned taxes are leaving with them, along with the future human resources capital they represent.

Education authorities must reverse this trend, even if there is little they can do immediately about the broader social problems behind it.

South Africa is so desperate for skills; paradoxically many youngsters complain they cannot find good work. This suggests a mismatch between the skills government and industry require and the output of tertiary institutions. Career guidance remains a low priority and clearly universities have not yet fully grasped the requirements of prospective employers.

Many claim to be looking for a more lucrative start to their careers. If South Africa was to make it easier for students to study – the efforts of government aid for indigent students notwithstanding – perhaps fewer students would feel the need to seek out high-paying jobs overseas to settle massive debt.

Without action we will lose our most important resource: our people.

World Cup buzz needed

FIFA president Sepp Blatter is a man who has been enormously supportive of South Africa‘s opportunity to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup so when he offers some constructive criticism it is just as well to take heed.

At a recent press briefing attended by the Local Organising Committee for the 2010 World Cup Blatter did not mince his words in expressing concern about the lack of marketing being done in the run-up to both the Confederations Cup next year and the World Cup the year after, warning the committee “needed to get its act together”. “There should be banners around the cities about the 2010 World Cup. When you walk around these cities, you don‘t see banners,” he said.

He‘s right. There is a distinct lack of buzz about this once in a lifetime event for South Africa. It is almost as if the World Cup, for which so many fought so hard, has taken a backseat to the political turmoil in the ANC and the Jacob Zuma sideshows surrounding it.

However, we cannot afford to lose focus as it is unlikely this country will have another opportunity to host this massive international event – certainly not in the foreseeable future. It is thus vital that we make the most of our opportunity and host cities like Nelson Mandela Bay have a responsibility in joining the LOC to create a definite 2010 World Cup buzz locally and marketing the event internationally.

Opinion