An economic analysis of the mismatch between demand and supply of engineers in South Africa

M.Com. (Economics)This paper examines two issues: Firstly, it analyses the mismatch between the demand and the supply of engineers in South Africa (SA) and secondly, it investigates the availability of engineers (to serve per 100 000 people) in SA during the period 2000 - 2008. The study applied Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) together with a battery of Matrix tools. The findings of this study revealed that both the demand and the supply of engineers were rising but at varying rates. Results from the mismatch index demonstrated that the supply index has marginally improved between 2000 and 2008. This discovery could be relatively ascribed to the surge in engineering graduates from technikons. Furthermore, the study discovered that the trend of the mismatch index shows a '. negative mismatch between the demand and the supply of engineers in SA. This may imply that the demand for engineers has been satisfied only by the supply from universities between 2000 and 2008. In the light of the shortage of engineers, it was discovered that the need arose considerably between 2000 and 2008, since population growth escalated more rapidly than the supply of engineers. Based on these findings the following recommendations are suggested: In the short to medium term, the South African government should embark upon strategies aimed at curbing the exodus of its skilled and experienced engineers. This could be achieved through the creation of congenial working environments for local engineers. Financial incentives, in the form of competitive remuneration, should also be considered. In the same vein, the South African government needs to re-examine its labour laws, in order to make significant adjustments which may enable the country to attract expatriate engineers, without lengthy delays. In the long run, the South African government needs to broaden the capacity of both secondary schools and universities in terms of the production of competent Science teachers and lecturers. In this regard, the South African government could send its Mathematics and Science teachers, lecturers and educators to countries that are leading these fields for quality training. The most likely positive outcome of this could be the increased number of competent Mathematics and Science educators in South Africa, which will in turn translate into well-equipped matriculants meeting the tougher demands of the Engineering degree programmes at both technikon and university levels