Picture: The Gabobidiwe Secondary School in Buxton village

By BAKENG MAJE

Parents at Gabobidiwe Secondary School in Buxton village, near Taung, raised some concerns. This comes after the school principal allegedly prohibited transgender learners from entering the school without wearing skirts.

One of the parents who cannot be named to protect her Grade 9 learner who is a minor alleged that, the incident took place last week. She said now lesbian learners are idling at home and that will affect their school work.

“We were left despondent as parents after our children were refused entry at the school by the principal. My daughter is a lesbian, but the principal is forcing her and other learners to wear skirts. She said she does not feel comfortable wearing a skirt because other learners are mocking her.

“So, in January 2024, we took this matter to the sub-district office in Taung, and the learners were allowed to go to school. However, now the principal said all transgender learners should wear skirts because they are ruining the school’s reputation,” she said.

She said the principal allegedly told them to take transfer letters if they do not want to comply. She said they urge the North West Department of Education for intervention.

The North West Department of Education spokesperson, Mphata Molokwane said, the school has a uniform policy on which uniform is dressed on which day. Molokwane further said the policy has been implemented as such until December 2023 and there were no complaints.

“This year, the school got new learners who do not agree with the school’s uniform policy. As the department, we spoke to the principal to immediately allow learners to wear uniform properly whether a skirt or trousers it does not matter as so long is clean.

“Tracksuits to have a Special Day on Wednesdays and other days, a skirt/formal trouser with a prescribed shirt or tie. Girls and boys are allowed to choose between trousers or skirts as long as the uniform is in school colour and prescribed patterns,” he said.

Molokwane added that the uniform must be clean at all times. He said the National Guidelines of School Uniforms are obvious on how uniforms should be worn by learners in every school.

“So, we encourage parents together with learners to familiarize themselves with our policies so that we can have a similar clear understanding and a unified school,” said Molokwane.

Meanwhile, the chairperson of the Baga Mothibi LGBTQI+ community, Dimakatso Molusi said: “The school must allow transgender learners to wear the school uniform that corresponds to their gender identity by the right to education and non-discrimination in terms of the South African Constitution and the African Children’s Charter.

“So, this is not the first case that we are dealing with. We had a similar case at PH Mooketsi Agricultural School, where the principal allegedly forced a transgender learner to wear a skirt. So, we organised the meeting with the school, however, on the said day, the parents of the learner did not pitch.”

Molusi said this is unfair and discriminating against the LGBTQI+ community. She said discrimination against transgender and homosexual learners in South Africa is a concern.”

“Even though our organisation is under-resourced, we will continue to visit schools and engage various stakeholders in addressing the plague,” said Molusi.

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Setshwantsho: Moswi, Tsholofelo Nde Emphukile

Ka REGINALD KANYANE

Monna wa dingwaga di le 47 o solofetswe go ka dira kopo ya beile kwa kgotlha-tshekelo ya Taung mo letsatsing la gompieno. Kabelo Mogongwa one a tshwarwa morago ga dipego tsa gore o thuntsitse lekgarebe la gagwe, Tsholofelo Nde Emphukile (38).

Go begwa fa lekawana le, le lekgarebe la gagwe ba ne ba dula botlhe kwa phaphosing e e hirilweng kwa motseng Khibitswane, gaufi le Taung.

Go ya ka sebueledi sa sepodisi mo Bokone Bophirima, Mokaptein Aaftje Botma, moagisani wa monna o, o ile a tlhalosetsa sepodisi fa baratani ba, ba gorogile ka ura ya bongwe mo mosong, mme go ile ga tsoga kgakgauthano ma gareng ga bone.

“O kaile fa a utlwile modumo wa sethunya. Sepodisi se ile sa biletswa kwa lefelong la tiragalo, mme se ile sa fitlhela moswi mogare ga bophadiphadi jwa madi.

“Sepodisi se ile sa tlhoka gore ba shage burglars gore ba kgone go tsena mo ntlung. Molatofadiwa o ile a tshwarwa, mme one a ganelwa ka beile,” Botma wa tlaholsa.

Kgabagare, sebueledi sa lelapa la moswi, Medupe Emphukile are: “Re utlwisitswe botlhoko ke tiragalo e, mme ga ke itse gore a kgolagano ya moswi le molatofadiwa kgale e na le mathata. Kgale ba dula ba le babedi kwa Khibitswane, mme Tsholofelo ene kgale a tla fela fa etile kwa lapeng kwa Cokonyane.”

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By CYRIL RAMAPHOSA

To succeed in an ever-changing global economy, our country needs far more people with the right skills. This is so that our economy can be competitive, grow and create employment. As a country, we have invested much in producing these skills, from significantly expanding access to higher education, introducing digital programmes in TVET colleges and a shift to a new pay-for-performance approach to skills development.

However, it will take some time before we will be able to produce enough skilled people to enable our country to grow rapidly.

 A review report published last year found that South Africa’s available labour supply “does not match demand from companies which are essentially looking to employ management-level personnel, professionals, engineers, technicians, science and maths educators, as well as IT experts”. This means that, at least in the short-term, many of the these high-level skills must be sourced internationally.

Last week, the Department of Home Affairs published for public comment draft amendments to existing immigration regulations that will significantly boost our efforts to attract workers with critical skills to South Africa. The draft amendments deal with two visa categories: a remote working visa and the critical skills visa.

The introduction of a remote working visa responds to the rapidly evolving world of work, where increasing numbers of skilled workers, notably in the tech industry, are attracted by the lifestyle benefits of working from a remote location. It also caters to so-called digital nomads, who are able to work virtually from any location in the world. A remote worker who wants to work in South Africa while being employed by a foreign company will be able to receive such a visa.

The draft regulations propose the introduction of a points system for critical skills visas that will take into account factors such as age, qualifications, language skills, work experience and having an offer of employment, amongst others.

The publication of the new draft regulations are part of our ongoing drive to reform the country’s visa system, making it easier to attract the skills our economy needs and promoting innovation and entrepreneurship. An efficient, agile, responsive visa regime is key to attracting business investment and boosting economic growth.

International experience shows that employees with critical skills contribute to improved productivity, enhanced innovation, and improving the competitiveness of the firms they work for.

In October last year, the Department of Home Affairs released guidelines for corporate employers under a ‘Trusted Employer Scheme’, which will make the visa process easier for large investors and streamline application requirements.

Under this scheme, a company looking to employ skilled foreign workers would be vetted and approved in advance to reduce the administrative burden for visa applications.

With South Africa fast becoming an increasingly attractive destination for industries like business process outsourcing and customer experience, attracting more skilled workers will be important. Last year, for example, a leading international strategic advisory firm ranked South Africa second as the most favoured offshore customer experience delivery destination globally. Since 2016, government has invested more than R3 billion towards supporting the growth and expansion of business process outsourcing, and is targeting the creation of approximately 500,000 jobs in the sector by 2030.

In line with our ongoing efforts to attract higher levels of investment and promote job creation, the new work visa regulations are a milestone. They are part of high-impact structural reforms we are undertaking to improve the business operating environment.

They send a clear signal to business that we are committed to attracting skills that meet the demands of a modern, inclusive and growing economy.

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Picture: The RSA president, Cyril Ramaphosa