Empowering our Citizens
25 Years of Harnessing Skills
The National Skills Fund (NSF) was established in 1998 in terms of Section 27 of the Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act 97 of 1998) (SDA).
28 708
Learners were supported financially for education and training in 2023/24.
6 330
Learners were funded towards occupations in high demand in 2023/24.
17 767
Learners funded from rural areas in 2023/24.
62 500
Education and training beneficiaries targeted for funding in 2024/25.
Our Funded Programmes
These bursaries and scholarships are funded by three government agencies: NSFAS, NRF and the DHET.
Focused on skills development, not capital funding.
NSF’s found legislation, the Skills Development Act, encourages employers to use the workplace as an active learning environment.
Capacity Building, Research and Innovation Projects
This is achieved in close collaboration with public universities, the DHET, NSA and HRDC.
What’s new at the NSF
The National Skills Fund (NSF) has committed R775 million to expand youth access to post-school education and training in the Eastern Cape.
Furniture World in Pretoria, Gauteng, and the North West Community Education and Training (NW CET) College in Brits, North West, were the
The National Skills Fund (NSF) has been funding post-school education and training and skills development since 1999. With the approved funding of
Strategic Outcomes
The NSF’s aim is to make a significant contribution to developing the right skills for the labour market and self-employment through its funding decisions. The NSF does this by supporting various post-school learning pathways and initiatives that are designed to ensure equitable access to quality post-school education and training (PSET).
In an effort to improve citizens’ employment possibilities and achieve greater economic freedom the NSF will;
- Continue to receive 20% of the skills development levy.
- Fund and scale-up the training of unemployed people.
- Continue to support social partners to play a more active role in the development and implementation of the National Skills Development Plan (NSDP).
- Support research into the post-school education and training system to inform future skills needs of South Africa
Revised Strategic Plan
NSF Refined its Strategic Plan for 2020 to 2025
Realising organisational sustainability is at the crux of NSF’s revised strategy. These are all the activities to ensure a sound service delivery environment and effective management of the levy income entrusted to the entity for national skills development priorities.
Organisational sustainability is an internally focused priority aimed at ensuring a sound service delivery environment and effective resource management in all major activities of the NSF, from the planning and initiation of skills development initiatives to be funded in the current five-year strategic period to the monitoring and evaluation of funded initiatives.
NSF Head Office
2nd, 6th and 7th Floors, Ndinaye House, 178 Francis Baard St., Pretoria Central, 0002
NSF KwaZulu-Natal Regional Office
2nd Floor, Thekwini TVET College, 262 D’Aintree Ave., Asherville, Durban, 4091
NSF Western Cape Regional Office
6th Floor, Golden Acre Towers, Adderley St., Cape Town, 8001
NSF Eastern Cape Regional Office
4th Floor, FNB Building Cnr Oxford and Union Street, East London, 5201
NSF
Funded Projects
Gandhi-Mandela Centre of Specialisation
Capacity Building: Gauteng
NIHSS bursaries for doctorates in humanities and social sciences
Bursaries and Scholarships: South Africa/SADC
DYDS technical support and end-user computer training
Skills Programmes: KwaZulu-Natal
TVET college campus construction
Skills Infrastructure: Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Mpumalanga
Vision, Mission and Values
Vision
Funding to skill our nation.
Mission
To provide funding for national skills development towards a capable South African citizenry that contributes to improving economic participation and social development.
Values
Passion | Integrity | Collaboration | Accountability | Service Excellence
Learn More
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The NSF is a Schedule 3A public entity that provides funding for skills development initiatives that are identified by the National Skills Development Plan (NSDP) 2030 as national priorities, and/or are related to the achievement of the Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act 97 of 1998) (SDA), and/or considered to be an activity undertaken by the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation to achieve a standard of good practice in terms of skills development. The NSF is funded through the skills levy fund, with a specific focus on providing funding for bursaries and scholarships in scarce and priority skills, learnership and skills programmes, and workplace-based learning as well as supporting capacity-building, skills infrastructure, research and innovation towards realising an improved post-school, education and training (PSET) system.
The NSF receives 20% of the skills development levy and interest earned on investments held at the Public Investment Corporation (PIC).
The NSF may also receive revenue from:
- Skills development levies collected and transferred to the NSF, in terms of the Skills Development Levies Act, 1999 (Act 9 of 1999) (SDL) in respect of those employers or sectors for which there is no sector education and training authority (SETA)
- Money appropriated by Parliament for the NSF
- Donations to the NSF
- Money received from any other source
The NSF funds projects identified in the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS) III as national priorities or for such other projects related to the achievement of the purposes of the Skills Development Act, 1998 (Act 97 of 1998) (SDA)as determined by the Director-General of Higher Education and Training, who is the accounting officer of the National Skills Fund (NSF). The National Skills Development Plan (NSDP) 2030, the current skills strategy in the 2020–2025 strategic period, affirms the NSF’s scope to direct funding towards improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the skills system, while building on the NSDS III implemented from 2011 to 2019.
In the period up to 2025, the NSF’s funding focus is geared towards targeted skills development interventions:
Learners enrolled in occupational programmes at public technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges, bursary and scholarship recipients for undergraduate and postgraduate studies in scarce and critical skills, workplace-based learning, small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and co-operatives, and participants in constituency-based skills development initiatives and worker education initiatives.
Apprenticeship development interventions supported by the NSF include the Centres of Specialisation (CoS) Programme and the efforts of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) to strengthen the institutional and policy frameworks to promote artisan training and initiatives to increase the enrolment of young people in artisan-related streams.
SMMEs and co-operatives development is a major government focus, which the NSF supports by funding SMME and co-operative skills development initiatives.
Community education and training (CET) colleges and community-based skills development initiatives are captive institutions for developing the skills of the most marginalised groups and will receive funding support in the 2020–2025 strategic period.
Worker education programmes spearheaded by worker federations, workers colleges and relevant worker research institutions are a key focus in the development of worker leadership and will continue to receive support.
Post-school education and training (PSET) system development projects will remain a major focus with the intent to build linkages within the skills system and support skills development capacity in public education and training institutions, specifically TVET and CET colleges.
Skills infrastructure development projects funded by the NSF include the establishment of the False Bay TVET College’s sixth campus (Swartklip) and 10 TVET campuses being built by the DHET in rural and peri-urban areas in the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal, and the TVET College Connectivity Project (TCCP).
Skills development research, innovation and advocacy initiatives are largely funded through the National Skills Authority (NSA), Human Resources Development Council of South Africa (HRDC) and planning branch of the DHET.
The NSF either issues a public open call requesting proposals or a closed call to targeted stakeholders.
An open call is issued through an advertisement in the Sunday Times and/or City Press and uploaded onto the website. This is followed by a compulsory or non-compulsory briefing and routine funding evaluation phases after the closing date, including administrative compliance, technical evaluation, due diligence, consideration by NSF governance structures and approval by the Director-General of Higher Education and Training, who is the accounting officer of the NSF.
A closed call is issued to a closed pool of stakeholders and the request for proposal (RFP) documents are not publicly available.
NSF funding application templates apply for both open and closed calls.
The NSF considers proactive or unsolicited skills development proposals that support innovative and creative responses to skills development.