Linking adult education and training to small and micro-enterprise promotion policies and institutions for self-employment in South Africa

Abstract

The article investigates the relationship between the small and micro-enterprise (SME) promotion policies and institutions, and the practice in adult education and training (AET) programs for self-employment in South Africa. The concern that informed this article is that adults who face long-term unemployment remain unemployed after completing the AET programs. The findings reveal that linkages of AET programs to SME promotion policies and institutions are not effective in providing post-training support for micro-enterprises of graduates because centre managers and trainers have inadequate knowledge of the policies and the respective custodian institutions, and they are poorly informed about the application processes. The author concludes that without linking the AET programs to SME promotion policies and institutions for self-employment, graduates will continue finding it difficult to be integrated into the labour market which perpetuates unemployment and chronic poverty in South Africa.