Brigitte Mabandla Justice

MESSAGE FROM DEPUTY MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Justice College has, over many years, been instrumental in developing skilled legal professionals and contributing to the effective functioning of the justice system in South Africa. Justice College’s Repositioning Strategy is ushering in a new era of training excellence as Justice College is transforming from its previous role as a school for the legal and quasi legal fields into a new and distinguished African training institution and research centre. Training plays a key role in the prosperity of a country. This is something which is highlighted in the National Development

Plan (NDP) Vision 2030. The NDP emphasizes the importance of skills development and aims to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality by 2030. To achieve this, South Africa must draw on the energies of its people by building capability, both human and institutional. Skills development and training also play a critical role in achieving economic growth. Developing a skilled workforce ensures that individuals can actively participate in the economy. The NDP envisions a capable and developmental state. A capable state refers to Government’s capacity, skills and resources to effectively implement policies and deliver services. A developmental state goes beyond mere administration and actively promotes economic growth and social progress. Key elements of a capable and developmental state include effective policy implementation and efficient institutions. These key elements are strengthened by a properly skilled and trained public service. Skills development is pivotal to enhanced service delivery. This is why the Repositioning Strategy of Justice College is of such importance. Skills development contributes to the enhanced professionalisation of the public service. In a rapidly changing world, continuous training ensures that public servants stay up-to-date with internationally-benchmarked practices, policies and technology. Training ensures that public servants have the necessary knowledge, expertise and skills to perform their jobs efficiently, which in turn leads to improved service delivery. It is important to highlight that given its expanded scope of training, Justice College will now be ideally placed to offer training and develop officials in the legal field and also to those in anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies. As a training provider, accredited by Safety and Security Sector Education and Training Authority, and also in the process of obtaining accreditation from the Quality Council for

2

Brigitte Mabandla | Justice College | Memoir