Article
Expectations for 2025: Question bank
Published: 03/02/2025
Agbiz Grain, in conjunction with
Lizelle Jacobs of MindAlive, plans
to complete a number of important
projects in 2025. One of these is the
Fumigation of Stored Agricultural
Products skills programme curriculum,
which is in its final stage. Valuable
inputs were received from the
fumigation work group, and the final
curriculum will be presented to all
members in February, after which it
will be submitted to AgriSETA for
registration with the Quality Council
for Trades and Occupations (QCTO). The Grain Depot Manager
occupational qualification has been
registered on the Occupational
Qualifications Framework (OQF) for a
year, and skills development providers
are currently training students to
become world-class depot managers.
However, this qualification can only be
certified once the student has written
the External Integrated Assessment
(EISA), a nationally standardised
assessment administered in accredited
assessment centres. Industry subject matter experts are responsible for
compiling a question bank from which
each EISA can be compiled. Agbiz Grain has received nominations
for experts who have helped with
this important task during 2024.
Unfortunately, this process is a year
behind schedule. Urgent attention is
needed to ensure students can apply
for certification via the EISA when
they complete their training at the end
of 2025. Agbiz Grain plans to develop
accredited skills programmes for
sampling and grading of various
agricultural commodities for training
students on specific commodities. A
funding application has been submitted
to AgriSETA for the development of
the curriculum and learning material
for maize (white and yellow), wheat,
soya beans, and sunflower seed in
2025. The same will be done for barley,
canola, sorghum, and groundnuts
in 2026. The process to be followed is similar to
the one used for the Fumigation Skills
Programme currently in development.
A working group will be nominated
from the grain industry and, along with
a facilitator, will develop the outline
and scope of each skills programme.
All curricula are submitted to the
QCTO for registration.
– Lizelle Jacobs, MindAlive