The proposal to separate education into two departments — one focusing on schooling and the other on further education — might be finalised by next week, ANC Secretary General Gwede Mantashe said on Thursday.

"At this point in time, we think a ministry of education is just too big," he told an African National Congress progressive business forum event in Cape Town.

It did not give the minister time to focus on the problems facing education.

"The reality of the matter is that there's a very strong view that says we can't just go with business as usual in education, because education is not just about learning," Mantashe said.

A child in a poor household, after the first 12 years of learning, could be the entry point to break the backbone of poverty at a household level.

"I'm not talking of a degree; just having matric," he said.

The schooling system needed to be improved sooner rather than later.

It is not good enough

"Because if that schooling system doesn't prepare a child for higher education and for entry into the labour market, it is not good enough."

Higher education itself also needed improving. Among other things, 50 percent of students dropped out after their second year, he said.

"Why is that the case?" Mantashe asked.

The higher education infrastructure also did not respond to the issue of scarce skills. One example was engineers.

"One of the things we're still paying dearly for is that, if you look into all the former black universities... not a single one has an engineering faculty.

"Because the education system at the time was talking to the system that was not ready to accept that a black person can be an engineer."

This had to be addressed so that the educational infrastructure generated sufficient engineering graduates in all disciplines.

Addressing scarce skills

Currently, it generated a surplus of social science graduates.

"Until we deal with that issue, we will always come back to the question of whether graduates respond to the scarce skills, when the system doesn't generate sufficient skills in various critical areas.

"The reality of the matter is that the education system must actually be such that it talks to the economic needs," he said.

Asked about the so-called brain drain of professionals leaving the country, Mantashe said one of the results of the global financial crisis was that the brain drain was reversed.

Because developed economies were hardest hit by the financial crisis, the professionals who left were beginning to stream back.

It reflected the basic economic theory that people went where there was demand, and when demand there declined they moved back to where demand was growing, he said.

Integrated global economy

There was a big body of professionals who followed opportunities. This was a result of being part of the integrated global economy.

People followed opportunities, as demonstrated by the large numbers of foreign engineers now working on major construction projects in South Africa, he said.

"One thing we should never, never try to do is to say South African professionals must be locked in South Africa."

They should be integrated into the global economy and should follow opportunities.

Mantashe said he was proud of the many South Africans making their mark abroad.

"When you see a South African CEO heading a global company, I believe you see that there is substance in our country. We must just go in there and exploit it," he said

Sapa