Pretoria – After completing her studies at the Vaal University of Technology Pamela Moyana from Witbank in Mpumalanga found herself sitting at home doing nothing, unable to find employment.
These days, however, she wakes up with a smile on her face as she prepares to go to work.
Moyana is among the 33 call centre agents employed at the Central Application Clearing House (CACH) in Randburg, which assists matriculants struggling to secure a place at an institution of higher learning.
“Last year I sat at home for 11 months without a job and I heard about the job through word of mouth.
“I like … that I’m making a difference in applicants’ lives and that once I’ve captured the details of the applicant she is able to go back to school and that is what makes me wake up every day with a smile on my face,” Moyana told SAnews.
In partnership with Business Development Bankserv Africa, the Department of Higher Education and Training introduced the CACH facility in 2012 to help minimise long registration queues at the institutions of higher learning at the beginning of each year.
The facility, which operates between January and February, matches prospective students’ profiles, study preference, universities, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges, as well as learnerships within the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs).
Students can get hold of CACH by calling the toll free number 0800 356 635 where a call centre agent registers their details on the CACH database.
Applicants can also send an SMS with their name and ID number to 49200 and they will receive a call from a department contact centre agent who will register all their details on CACH.
They can also contact the centre via online at http://cach.dhet.gov.za
Once the applicant’s information is captured in the database, the tertiary institutions have access to the list to see how they can place applicants to the vacancies they have and match up the applicant’s request into the vacancies they have.
As at 19 January 2017, the centre has processed 9 771 applications.
Speaking to SAnews during a tour of the centre on Friday, Acting Project Coordinator for CACH, Isaac Lephalala said CACH is a temporary measure to make sure that the department manages walk-ins at universities efficiently.
“The department is actually working on a bigger project, which is called the Central Application Service (CAS). We are building a bigger system to handle applications, which will help government in their planning.
“If we know how many people are in our system, the allocation of funding can improve and the universities can have the right people [in the right] courses, and a much more manageable environment,” said Lephalala.
Head of Business Development Bankserv Africa, Luvendra Naidu, said since its establishment, the centre has created employment for 365 people. “We’ve trained and given them sufficient skills for employment.”
Over the last five years, approximately 70 000 students have been registered.
“We’ve spoke to the department’s vision in terms of making the clearing house accessible for larger population,” said Naidu.
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