{
  "id": 3929670,
  "title": "SAICTA targets ICT jobs gap with new portal",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/28/saicta-targets-ict-jobs-gap-with-new-portal",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-28T08:07:54.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ITWeb",
    "slug": "itweb",
    "url": "https://www.itweb.co.za/article/saicta-targets-ict-jobs-gap-with-new-portal/KjlyrvwBrx5qk6am"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The South African Information and Communication Technology Association (SAICTA) has launched a new jobs portal named Industry Connect to bridge the gap between ICT professionals and employers. This innovative platform aims to connect employers, jobseekers, and professional development opportunities within a single system, catering specifically to ICT jobseekers, professionals, and employers seeking to recruit ICT talent. SAICTA CEO Dr Jannie Zaaiman emphasized that the initiative addresses a critical barrier to job creation, which is the disconnect between professionals with ICT skills and businesses needing those skills. The launch coincides with government and business entering phase three of their partnership to create a million jobs by 2030. Industry Connect features opportunities in various ICT disciplines, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, data, cyber security, cloud technologies, software development, AI ethics, quantum computing, robotic process automation, extended reality, and computer vision. The key challenge lies not only in acquiring technical skills but also in developing strong problem-solving, critical-thinking, adaptability, and communication skills, as technology continues to change. The portal was developed by Botlhale Village, a local technology firm, in collaboration with Belgium Campus iTversity and four senior students from Belgium Campus. The front-end is built using Angular web applications, while the open-source back-end platform Supabase handles the database. Industry Connect is hosted in the Xneelo cloud and uses Microsoft single sign-on for security. Employers can post job vacancies, and jobseekers can create profiles highlighting their qualifications, skills, and professional-development activities. The platform allows employers to connect directly with potential candidates, aligning skills with business needs. SAICTA also offers 151 professional-development courses that combine technical and soft skills, which will be updated based on industry feedback and benchmarks as technology and employer requirements evolve. Zaaiman highlighted the broader objective of using ICT to enable economic growth across various sectors, including energy, transport and logistics, mining, tourism, infrastructure, and agriculture. The association ensures personal information is processed in compliance with South Africa's data-protection legislation, including the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA). The platform employs authentication, access controls, and Cloudflare infrastructure for attack protection and scalability.",
  "summary": "The association introduces a portal to link ICT graduates and professionals with employers while helping address South Africa’s tech skills shortage.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}