By Xolisa Phillip
The publication of INSETA’s 2023-24 annual report, which marks four years into the organisation’s five-year strategic term, reflects a time of continuous transformation, says the education and training authority’s CEO Gugu Mkhize.
In pure numbers, the Insurance Sector Education and Training Authority (INSETA) has moved from a 72% performance, a decline experienced during the height of the Covid-19 crisis, to the present 97%, which is a testament to the organisational resilience built up post-pandemic.
In human terms, through the delivery of its mandate to provide quality assurance, learning programmes, skills planning, research and administration, INSETA’s work has changed lives and been the catalyst of dreams being realised, Mkhize told INSETA’s AGM.
“Thousands of South Africans now have the skills to participate meaningfully in the economy,” said the CEO, reflecting on the milestones in the 2023-24 INSETA annual report.
Mkhize explained that “each percentage point improvement in our performance, translates to families being supported, communities being uplifted and a stronger insurance sector”.
INSETA has embarked on a journey of excellence, underscored by a collective commitment and effort internally and externally to embed excellence in skills development.
The 97% performance in the 2023-24 reporting period is an outcome of collective dedication to INSETA’s excellence journey at all levels – from the board and SETA staff to stakeholders and the insurance sector.
Mkhize said the 97% attainment of INSETA’s targets reflected the power of collaboration among government, industry, delivery partners and communities – all working together to build a skilled and inclusive economy.
“This is what real transformation looks like,” said Mkhize, adding, “We have built strong partnerships with industry players, who share our vision of a transformed sector that reflects South Africa’s diversity.”
“We have worked closely with other skills delivery providers, some SETAs and educational institutions, as we share the same values when it comes to building a workforce that is ready for tomorrow’s demands,” Mkhize said.
The nod from industry, represented by 12 awards to INSETA, “are validation that our approach to inclusive skills development is making a real difference in addressing South Africa’s challenges of unemployment, inequality and poverty”.
Innovation and impact
Adapting to an ever-changing operating environment and a challenging socioeconomic context meant transcending a traditional approach to skills development.
INSETA’s business-unusual thinking and approach are apparent in the Skills for Rural Impact programme, designed to bring skills development opportunities where such opportunities and resources are in limited supply or non-existent.
Mkhize is emphatic that talent should not be restricted by geography because of a scarcity of opportunities.
“Therefore, we have taken our services directly to communities that have historically been excluded from the financial services sector,” she said.
“When we state that we have reached nearly 62,000 beneficiaries, with a target of 80,000 by financial year-end, we are referring to individuals in deep rural KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, who now see the insurance sector as a viable career path,” Mkhize explained.
Supporting small businesses
In line with the National Development Plan 2030, INSETA views small businesses as the backbone of the economy, possessing the potential to make a sizeable dent in South Africa’s high unemployment rate by generating jobs.
By supporting 1911 small businesses through development programmes, INSETA aims to create sustainable economic ecosystems in communities where the need is most pronounced.
For every small business supported by INSETA, five to 10 jobs are created in the insurance sector, which are sustainable and skills-based, Mkhize noted.
Our future vision
“As we march on to 2025-30, we are acutely aware that the insurance sector is undergoing rapid transformation,” Mkhize said.
The proliferation of Insurtech, a term used to describe online-based insurance start-ups and digital platforms whose operations are disruptive in nature, means the workforce in the sector must be adequately prepared for present challenges and future opportunities.
It is for those reasons that INSETA’s new strategic plan emphasises digital skills development while maintaining core insurance competencies.
“Importantly, the new strategic plan 2025-30 recognises that transformation must be inclusive. We are particularly focused on ensuring that historically marginalised groups, such as women, youth, people with disabilities and rural communities are not left behind in this digital revolution,” she said.
INSETA has disbursed substantial resources in digital technology through the establishment of DigiHub, a state-of-the-art facility developed in partnership with the Coastal TVET College.
The collaboration is a milestone that will help bridge the digital skills gap and empower students with the tools necessary to thrive in an increasingly technology-driven world.
“Every programme we design is aimed at responding to one fundamental question, which is about how to contribute to a more equitable and skilled insurance sector,” Mkhize said.
At present, “we are hard at work making preparations for the Skills Insurance Indaba scheduled to take place in March 2025,” the CEO said, adding that the meeting was part of INSETA’s commitment to serving its stakeholders with excellence.
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