The National School of Government (NSG) has invited public servants to enrol in a new course on strategies to revitalise the economy, which has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The NSG, an entity of the Department of Public Service and Administration, on Wednesday extended the invitation to public servants in the national, provincial and local government spheres. Workers in State-owned enterprises and the legislative sectors can also enrol.

The course is run in partnership with the Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS), an economic research institution supported by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition.

TIPS has vast research and economic policy development expertise, which have been converted into a dynamic training programme targeted at public servants, councillors, members of legislatures, senior managers of public entities, Premiers, Ministers, Deputy Ministers and MECs.

The NSG said the course explores the progression of the pandemic and its impact on the South African economy.

“It builds on research tracking the economy pre- and during COVID-19 and presents models of economic recovery, drawing from local plans and international experience. It draws extensively from sectors studies, in addition to macro and micro level interventions.”

While not compulsory, the school said some basic knowledge of economic policy would help participants navigate through the course.

Additional support can be provided for those without foundational knowledge of economics, said the NSG.

The course is a combination of self-learning and online lectures. It will run over six days over a five-week period. Among the lead facilitators is Dr Neva Makgetla, a Senior Economist from TIPS, with over 25 years’ experience in macro-economic policy management in the public sector.

The course starts in August 2021.

Source: South African Government News Agency