Unlocking 49.50% of the SDL & increasing B-BBEE training spend through CETA Discretionary Grants.

Employers are obligated to pay 1% of their total payroll to SARS for Skills Development Levies (SDLs). So where does all this money go? These Levies assist the rollout of the National Skills Development Plan (NSDP) in order to address the country’s scarce and critical skills gaps and ensure South Africa has adequate, appropriate and high-quality skills that contribute towards economic growth, employment creation and social development. In order to achieve this, these funds are apportioned to the National Skills Fund (20%); SETA Administration (10.5%); Mandatory Grants (20%); and Discretionary Grants (49.5%)

What is a Discretionary Grant?

A Discretionary Grant is an amount of funding that is allocated to qualifying entities and is meant to support education, training and skills development. Discretionary Grant funds that are allocated by CETA are spent on PIVOTAL programmes (Professional, Vocational, Technical and Academic learning programmes) that result in occupational qualifications or part qualifications on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). PIVOTAL programmes include learnerships, Work Integrated Learning, internships, bursaries and skills programmes. These can be for both employed and unemployed people.

Why are CETA Discretionary Grants provided?

These grants are intended to address the national and sectoral priorities; as well as to contribute to the achievement of the targets set out in the CETA Annual Performance Plan for the 2023/24 period and onwards. There is value in submitting a discretionary grant application to CETA as the employer has the potential to unlock an additional 49.50% of the skills development levy funding.

Learnerships for employed and unemployed people are a great way to increase your training spend, as you can count the salary of the learner as training expenditure under the Skills Development element in B-BBEE. The current tax incentives also make it attractive for companies to create learnership programmes.

Who are CETA Discretionary Grants for?

Stakeholders and any other interested parties may apply for Discretionary Grant (DG) funding to implement skills development interventions within the construction sector.

Applicants should be aware that preference is given to programmes that encourage the development of rural and township communities, youth, women, people with disabilities, and military veterans. For the 2023/24 period, Discretionary Grants are available for the following learning pathways:

When do Discretionary Grants open?

The Discretionary Grant window is now open, and the closing date for applications is 15 July 2023 at 23h59. It is important to note that all applications for Discretionary Grants must be approved before any training or other activity related to a skills development project can commence.

How do I apply for a Discretionary Grant?

Register on the Discretionary Grants Application System (DGAS) and submit an online application. You can click on the following link to go directly to the application page. CETA DISCRETIONARY GRANTS APPLICATION SYSTEM (DGAS). Enquiries can be sent to the following email: dgqueries@ceta.co.za or you can visit the CETA website for more information - https://www.ceta.org.za/discretionary-grant-funding-window

Heidi Kilian

Head: Training Academy