Tackling skilled labour shortages through skills development and localisation, particularly in infrastructure projects, has the potential to drive significant economic benefits for South Africa, says employment solutions provider Oxyon People Solutions MD Viren Sookhun.

While many companies in the construction industry, and those related to it, have stated their intention to promote localisation, a shortage of skilled labour has resulted in many companies seeking the skills they require from other countries.

Outsourcing has become normalised because it offers ease and efficiency, he adds.

Foreign companies often bring their own skilled labour to complete a project and offer a few opportunities for local workers, particularly in unskilled roles. However, once the project is completed, much of the capital generated is taken out of the country.

However, with the correct policies in place, Sookhun posits that this process could be localised to ensure that economic growth remains in South Africa.

"The entire value chain can be localised," he adds, emphasising that the country can localise various elements in the construction sectors – from infrastructure development to energy projects – without relying on foreign companies for labour.

Sookhun asserts that training and upskilling are essential to create sustainable employment and stimulate economic growth.

By prioritising training and upskilling, unskilled workers can develop specialised skills sets, while clear pathways for career advancement, from basic skills to supervisory positions, can be created. This would increase workers’ experience and earning potential while allowing for knowledge transfer from foreign experts to local managers.

Consequently, the economic benefits generated by infrastructure projects would be retained, and a skilled workforce capable of driving long-term growth, would be developed.

“To see this broader impact in our local economy, we have to have a very wealthy process of training and upskilling, which starts right from the bottom, all the way to the top.”

However, Sookhun notes that robust policies are needed to promote this approach, stating that the current local-content policy has become as a “tick-box exercise” for many foreign companies.

He argues that policy should shift towards sustainable empowerment to improve the quality of life for local communities. This includes embedding long-term training and development goals in construction projects, rather than meeting minimum localisation standards.

Acknowledging government's plans, including the announcement of 26 mega infrastructure projects up to 2030, Sookhun notes that the benefits of foreign direct investment will be limited without a comprehensive localisation strategy across the value chain.

Finding the Right Fit

While construction firms acknowledge the need to promote localisation, the policies and mechanisms to effectively implement this strategy, are lacking, says Sookkhun.

As a result, construction firms have to deal with the challenge of finding the required labour elsewhere.

Sookhun says the ideal approach would be for construction firms to use a standardised channel, such as through the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL), to find qualified workers.

However, while the DEL has specialised divisions, as well as a platform to assist firms in finding possible candidates, these efforts are not developed enough to meet the requirements of firms.

"The platform is not actively promoted to the business sector, and currently, most of the candidates applying through it are unskilled or semi-skilled.”

Sookhun stresses that the platform must improve, proposing that the DEL centralises its skills database and integrates technology solutions to enable skilled professionals to register and apply directly. The existing system should also be enhanced to handle high website volumes without crashing.

The DEL could establish partnerships with reputable recruitment agencies; these partnerships could form a panel of preferred recruiters that construction firms could access when seeking skilled labour. This centralised system would streamline the process of sourcing qualified candidates before firms decide to use foreign labour, he adds.

Sookhun acknowledges that emerging sectors, such as renewable energy and green hydrogen, require specialised skills that are not easily available locally, but notes that hiring professionals with these skills should include a strict skills transfer programme to train local workers.

He posits that reputable recruitment firms can fill the gap and simplify the process of finding the required labour from a local pool.

Partnering with established recruitment agencies would enable construction firms to access a database of skilled workers while avoiding the pitfalls of recruiting in house, which can lack the depth of historical data and expertise of agencies.

Leveraging such partnerships would enable firms to better navigate the skilled- labour shortage and contribute to the long-term goal of building a localised, skilled workforce capable of sustaining South Africa's economic growth, Sookhun concludes.