Hi everyone 👋
Happy August, everyone! Lots of things happening at Thrive….
First up, I’m feeling incredibly honoured to have been voted Chairperson of the Gauteng QCTO SDP Forum. There are 600+ private SDPs in the Forum, and I’m really looking forward to strengthening communication between SDPs and the QCTO and helping to streamline and improve compliance processes. Jon the WhatsApp group here and watch this space 🙌
I’m also delighted to share that the ASDSA has officially endorsed…our Assessing in the QCTO Environment workshop. Members can now earn 5 CPD points for attending. We’re so pleased to be working together on this one, and excited to see where it takes us.
As always, have a scroll and catch up on everything happening in the QCTO and skills development space this month. Many of you will know that Spring is my absolute favourite 💚 Trusting the change of season is ensuring a spring in your step too! ☀️ 🌸
Yours in skills,
Andrea
QCTO & SETA NEWS
ALL SETAs: Higher Education and Training Minister Buti Manamela has called on newly appointed Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) Accounting Authorities and Chief Executive Officers to drive a governance and performance reset. Read more here.
QCTO: A Technical Task Team has been appointed to monitor progress on the transitional arrangements. Have concerns? Send them to Tr**********************@******rg.za. Read more here.
QCTO: The Gauteng leg of the SDP Capacity Building Workshop kicked off in early August at Sedibeng TVET College’s Vanderbijlpark Campus. First up on the agenda was unpacking the key issues facing private Skills Development Providers. See more here.
QCTO: Ever wondered how Occupational Programmes are achieved? QCTO shared a handy breakdown this week. You can find it here.
QCTO: Here is the now very active QCTO Gauteng SDP WhatsApp group. An excellent way to stay in touch and have your say about QCTO challenges experienced.
QCTO: Proudly celebrated 10 years of consecutive Clean Audits – a decade of clean governance, accountability and excellence. Read more here.
QCTO: Wrapped up their SDP Capacity Building Workshop in Kimberley, hosted at Northern Cape TVET College. Private SDPs strengthened their understanding of accreditation, quality assurance, and their role in occupational qualifications. here.
QCTO: Wrapped up their SDP Capacity Building Workshop at Tshwane North TVET College. Private SDPs gained the knowledge and support to deliver quality occupational qualifications and build a skilled, capable workforce. Read more here.
QCTO: Hosted a two-day TVET and CET Capacitation Workshop at Thekwini TVET College Centec Campus, equipping officials with practical guidance on QCTO requirements, implementation, quality assurance, and compliance. Read more here.
QCTO: Participated in the SAQA NQF Stakeholder Workshop at Westcol TVET College, where stakeholders discussed strengthening South Africa’s National Qualifications Framework (NQF). Read more here.
QCTO: Capacity Building Workshop took place at the QCTO offices in Pretoria, equipping TVET and CET regional management with the knowledge to strengthen quality assurance across the PSET sector. Read more here.
QCTO: Hosted the SDP Capacity Building workshop online which covered essential topics, including accreditation, assessment and certification, learner enrolment, EISA registration, RPL process, and the submission of EISA results. Find out more here.
QCTO: As part of its Mandela Day initiative, the QCTO recently visited Winterveldt High School in Mabopane to empower Grade 11 and Grade 12 learners through a career guidance session. Read more here.
SAQA: Here is the list of extended legacy programmes and unit standards. You can see these changes effected on the SAQA website as well.
AGRISETA: Released the July edition of the Connect newsletter, covering key developments and sector priorities. Read more here.
AGRISETA: AgriSETA invites stakeholders to its 2026 National Stakeholder Engagement Roadshow, running across all nine provinces, covering the 2026/27 Annual Performance Plan, changes to the Discretionary Grant Policy, and the 2027/28 Sectoral Priority Occupation list. Register here.
MQA Discretionary Grant window, closing 21 August 2026
MQA invites SMMEs, Cooperatives, NGOs, CBOs, and NPOs in the mining and minerals sector to apply for Discretionary Grant funding through its Small Business and Cooperatives Support Programme. Read more here.
CHIETA Discretionary Grant window, closing 25 August 2026
CHIETA invites chemical sector employers and enterprises to apply for the 2026/27 Cycle 3 Discretionary Grants Funding Window, supporting skills development initiatives that strengthen industry capabilities. Read more here
AgriSETA Discretionary Grant window, closing 15 September 2026
AgriSETA invites employers, training providers, and stakeholders in the agriculture sector to apply for Discretionary Grant funding, covering Graduate Placements, Internships, Bursaries, Artisan Development, and Skills Programmes. Read more here
We also have some new OHS titles coming soon:
Including three Occupational Health and Safety Compliance Ensurer programmes at Essential, Intermediate and Advanced levels.
Take a look at our training materials web page or download the full list of programmes:
WHOOP WHOOPS
Congratulations to the following organisations for achieving their QCTO accreditations with us and well done to our super-duper, enthusiastic and energetic accreditation partners:
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: join Thrive Community…a just-in-time, day-by-day account of the QCTO and Seta goings-on. Full of titbits, info, insights and offers….link here:
