Stimulating quality in education and research, as well as bridging the gap between industry and academics, were the central themes at the opening session of the eighth Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Postgraduate Conference, held at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits) earlier this month.

CIDB CEO Mzwandile Sokupa stated that the CIDB was committed to the development of the construction skills needed in South Africa and to the constant sustainability and development of the industry.

The CIDB’s objectives in hosting the conference was to stimulate quality educational research, the growth and development of students and growth and knowledge in the construction industry.

“We witness service delivery protests daily, and academia across Africa is called upon to develop strategic research to address the challenges in Africa. The CIDB is aware of the debate in industry and academia regarding the quality of education and we are monitoring this closely,” he said.

Sokupa added that the CIDB was also aware of the state of transformation at universities and noted that the challenge was to make academia attractive to South African students.

He noted that South African students left the local education system to go into industry as soon as possible.

Conferences, such as the CIDB Postgraduate Conference, were important to strengthen educational institutions and industry, he said, adding that and lasting partnerships formed with those who attended the conference were necessary to learn from their experiences.

Wits vice chancellor and principal Adam Habib agreed on the importance of partnerships between universities and industry and further stated that the system of higher education needed to expand.

“There has been a divide among the industrial sectors, industry and higher education. Industry constantly needs to be renewed by intellectual ideas and, simultaneously, universities need to be simultaneously nationally responsible for producing the skills for industry,” he stated.

Habib added that national and international higher education and industry partnerships were important because if the university system faltered, then so would industry.

“For too long, our construction industry has been a product of our politics, resulting in the construction of an urban landscape that is particularly exclusionary. We’ve inherited a divide,” he said.