LGSETA at the WorldSkills South Africa Career Festival

The LGSETA continues to partake in vocational training activities, most recently through a high-impact participation in the WorldSkills Competition, Conference, and Career Festival hosted at the ICC, KZN from 9-12 March 2026. This national event serves as a platform for showcasing the talent of South Africa’s youth and the critical importance of artisan trades in our economy.

A key highlight of our participation was the partnership between LGSETA and the Artisans

Development Academy (ADA) during the Career Festival. Together, we occupied a central space to engage with thousands of learners, educators, and industry stakeholders. The collaboration with the Artisans Development Academy was a deliberate move to bring “hands-on” experience to the Career Festival. While the WorldSkills competitors battled it out in their respective trades, our joint stand focused on the information required to enter these fields.

By partnering with the ADA, we were able to demonstrate the practical journey of becoming an artisans, where learners got the chance to test the electric circuit that was displayed at the stand. The Academy’s expertise in technical training perfectly complemented the LGSETA’s mandate to facilitate skills development within local government, where skilled plumbers, electricians, and mechanics are the backbone of service delivery.

The Career Festival was more than just an exhibition; it was an interactive hub of inspiration. Our team engaged with learners to:

• Break the stigma around vocational training and highlighting it as a first-choice career path.
• Showing how artisan skills are vital for maintaining municipal infrastructure from water systems to electrical grids.
• Outlining the steps from basic schooling to TVET college enrolment and eventually into LGSETA-funded apprenticeships and trade tests.

The concurrent WorldSkills Conference brought together global experts to discuss the future of work and the “green” skills transition. For the LGSETA, these insights are invaluable as we refine our Sector Skills Plan (SSP) to ensure our local municipalities remain resilient and future ready.

Our involvement in WorldSkills South Africa reaffirms that the LGSETA is not just a funding body, but a proactive partner in the national skills ecosystem. By supporting events of this magnitude, we ensure that the local government sector remains an attractive and professional destination for the country’s top technical talent.