What is The QCTO Mandate?

The QCTO Mandate. A brief outline of the legislation shaping QCTO responsibilities. What does the QCTO do for us?

What Does the QCTO Do?: QCTO Mandate

The Skills Development Act (SDA), in Chapter 6C (Sections 26F – J), stipulates that the QCTO must:

Advise the Minister on all matters of policy concerning occupational standards and qualifications.
Perform its functions in terms of the Skills Development Act and the National Qualifications Framework Act.
Subject to any policy issued:
- Design and develop occupational standards and qualifications
- Submit qualifications to the South African Qualifications Authority for registration on the National Qualifications Framework;
- Establish and maintain occupational standards and qualifications;
- Ensure the quality of occupational standards and qualifications and learning in and for the workplace;
- Promote the objectives of the National Qualifications Framework;
- Liaise with the National Skills Authority on the suitability and adequacy of occupational standards and qualifications and on the quality of learning in and for the workplace; and
- Perform any other prescribed function.

The QCTO contributes to the following aspects of the White Paper for Post-School Education and Training:

Relationship between education and training institutions, and the workplace is strengthened through the model of qualification design that defines workplace activities;
Strengthening and expansion of TVET College system;
Review and rationalise occupational qualifications;
Improve quality assurance processes and standardise these across the Post-School education and training system; and
Continue to standardise qualification development.

The Government Gazette No. 34932 R202 (5) which makes provision for SETAs to: “monthly from 1 October 2012 transfer as part of its administration costs as contemplated in sub-regulation (1) and approved in the annual SETA strategic plan, a max of 0,5% of the total levy received by the SETA to QCTO for quality assurance functions as contemplated in section 26H of the Act;”
Government Gazette published August 2013 on Amendments to the Determination of the National Qualifications Framework’s Sub-frameworks (Gazette No.36 803 published on 30 August 2013);
White Paper for Post-School Education and Training launched on 16 January 2014 by the Minister.
The publication of the Occupational Qualifications Sub-Framework policy document in July 2014.

In addition to the duties described above, the following is a list of additional QCTO responsibilities:

responsible for quality assurance and reconstruction of qualifications offered by TVET Colleges.
manage the unit standards based qualifications,
registration of qualifications and the expiry or replacing of historically registered (unit standards based, provider-based etc) qualifications
bottle necks experienced regarding registration of qualfications have decreased.
Focus on plan to speed up the qualifications development process as well as the realignment of historically registered qualifications.
has developed almost a third of the priority qualifications from the listed trades.
All national trade qualifications internationally comparable.
QCTO moving forward with replacement of qualifications and expect a significant reduction of historically registered qualifications as the new occupational qualifications gain prominence.