B-BBEE Skills Development: A Guide for South African Employers
B-BBEE Skills Development encourages South African businesses to invest in recognised learning and development opportunities for Black people. But achieving meaningful Skills Development outcomes involves more than simply allocating a training budget.
The type of learning programme, who participates, how expenditure is recognised and the evidence retained can all influence an organisation’s B-BBEE performance.
Let’s unpack how the Skills Development element works, what can count towards it, and how employers can approach training in a way that supports both B-BBEE objectives and genuine workforce development.
What is B-BBEE Skills Development?
B-BBEE Skills Development is the part of the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment framework that recognises businesses for investing in the development of skills among Black people through qualifying learning programmes and development initiatives.
Under the Generic Codes of Good Practice, Skills Development is one of the priority elements of B-BBEE, alongside Ownership and Enterprise and Supplier Development. This gives it particular importance in determining an organisation’s overall B-BBEE performance.
Skills Development can include a range of recognised learning interventions, including occupational qualifications, learnerships, apprenticeships, internships, skills programmes and bursaries. How these interventions contribute depends on the applicable B-BBEE Code and the requirements associated with each type of programme.
For employers, the objective should therefore extend beyond earning B-BBEE points. Well-planned Skills Development can help build workplace capability, create pathways into employment and support progression within the workforce.
Why is Skills Development important for B-BBEE?
Skills Development has particular importance within B-BBEE because it is classified as a priority element under the Generic Codes.
For organisations to which the requirement applies, the Skills Development sub-minimum is calculated as 40% of the element’s 20 weighting points. Failure to meet an applicable priority-element sub-minimum can result in the organisation’s B-BBEE status level being discounted by one level.
But the value of Skills Development should not be measured only in scorecard points. When training is aligned with genuine organisational needs, it can also help businesses address skills gaps, develop existing employees, create pathways into employment, build supervisory and management capability, support career progression and strengthen workplace capability.
The strongest Skills Development strategies therefore align transformation objectives with real workforce needs, rather than treating training simply as expenditure required for B-BBEE purposes.
How does the B-BBEE Skills Development scorecard work?
The B-BBEE Skills Development scorecard measures more than whether a business spends money on training. It considers what type of learning takes place, who benefits from it and whether the intervention meets the relevant recognition requirements.
Under the Generic Codes, the principal Skills Development indicators are:
| Skills Development indicator | Weighting points | Generic Code target |
|---|---|---|
| Recognised Skills Development expenditure for Black people | 6 | 3.5% of leviable amount |
| Bursary expenditure for Black students at higher education institutions | 4 | 2.5% of leviable amount |
| Skills Development expenditure for Black employees with disabilities | 4 | 0.3% of leviable amount |
| Black people participating in learnerships, apprenticeships and internships | 6 | 5% of employees |
| Absorption following qualifying programmes | 5 bonus points | 100% |
These indicators are set out in the amended Generic Code Series 300.
What does this mean in practice?
A useful way to understand the scorecard is that it rewards a Skills Development portfolio, not simply a training budget.
Employers can think about that portfolio across three dimensions:
Spend: How much qualifying expenditure is being directed towards recognised learning?
Participation: Who is entering structured learning pathways such as learnerships, apprenticeships and internships?
Outcomes: What happens as a result of that learning, including progression and, where relevant, absorption?
An employer could spend significantly on training without necessarily performing strongly against the Skills Development element if that expenditure does not align with the relevant indicators and recognition rules.
Conversely, a well-planned mix of learning interventions can support workforce development and B-BBEE performance at the same time.
It is also important to establish which B-BBEE Code applies before using the figures above for planning. Businesses operating in sectors governed by a gazetted Sector Code must measure their B-BBEE performance according to that Sector Code, and its Skills Development requirements may differ from the Generic Codes.
What counts towards B-BBEE Skills Development?
A range of learning interventions can potentially contribute towards B-BBEE Skills Development, but they are not all recognised in the same way.
Depending on the applicable Code and programme requirements, these may include occupational qualifications, learnerships, apprenticeships, internships, skills programmes, bursaries and scholarships, workplace-based learning and certain informal learning interventions.
The key point for employers is:
A training activity is not automatically a B-BBEE Skills Development contribution simply because money was spent on it.
Recognition can depend on the type of learning intervention, who participates, how the programme is structured, the expenditure incurred and the evidence available to substantiate it.
This means two training interventions with similar costs can have quite different implications for B-BBEE measurement.
Three questions to ask before choosing a Skills Development programme
| Question | What you are trying to establish |
|---|---|
| 1. What capability are we trying to build? | The actual workplace or career-development need. |
| 2. Which learning intervention best addresses it? | Whether a qualification, learnership, Skills Programme or another intervention is the right fit. |
| 3. How will it be recognised for B-BBEE purposes? | Its treatment under the applicable Code and Learning Programme Matrix. |
The order matters.
Starting only with B-BBEE points can result in training being selected without a meaningful connection to the organisation’s skills needs. Starting only with the training requirement can create the opposite problem: an employer may discover later that the intervention is not recognised in the way it expected.
The strongest approach is where workforce need and B-BBEE recognition intersect.
What is the B-BBEE Learning Programme Matrix?
The Learning Programme Matrix is the framework used by the Generic Codes to classify different types of learning interventions.
Rather than treating all training as equivalent, it separates interventions according to their structure, learning environment, assessment and recognised learning outcome. The matrix encompasses formal learning leading to qualifications as well as workplace-based and informal forms of learning.
For employers, the significance of the matrix is less about memorising its individual categories and more about understanding that programme structure affects B-BBEE treatment.
For example, under the current Generic Code, Skills Development expenditure arising from Category F and G informal and workplace Learning Programmes cannot represent more than 25% of total recognised Skills Development expenditure.
A useful planning sequence is therefore:
Skills need → appropriate learning intervention → Learning Programme Matrix classification → B-BBEE recognition
…rather than beginning with a B-BBEE category and finding training simply to fit it.
The matrix should be a classification tool, not the starting point for the training decision.
What is B-BBEE Skills Development expenditure?
B-BBEE Skills Development expenditure is the amount an organisation can recognise for qualifying learning and development activity under the applicable B-BBEE Code.
That is not necessarily the same as its total training budget.
A useful distinction is to think about three different amounts:
| Amount | What it represents |
|---|---|
| Training budget | Everything the organisation intends to spend on learning and development. |
| Qualifying programme expenditure | Spend associated with interventions that meet relevant B-BBEE recognition requirements. |
| Recognised Skills Development expenditure | The amount ultimately recognised for measurement after applicable rules, limits and evidence requirements are applied. |
This distinction matters because a business can invest substantially in employee development without every part of that expenditure necessarily contributing towards its B-BBEE Skills Development targets.
Under the Generic Codes, legitimate training-related expenditure can include more than programme fees. Certain costs such as accommodation, catering, travel and the cost of employing a Skills Development facilitator or training manager may also be recognised, subject to the applicable rules. These specified ancillary costs cannot exceed 15% of total Skills Development expenditure.
Salaries and wages are treated more specifically. Among the circumstances provided for in the Generic Code are employees participating as learners in learnerships, internships and apprenticeships.
The practical implication is important:
Employers should establish how a learning intervention and its associated costs will be recognised before training begins, rather than trying to reconstruct B-BBEE expenditure at verification time.
In other words:
Identify the need → select the intervention → establish recognition → budget → implement → retain evidence.
What are the B-BBEE Skills Development requirements?
There is no single B-BBEE Skills Development checklist that applies identically to every South African business. Requirements can depend on the organisation, the Code under which it is measured, its Skills Development Levy obligations and the type of learning intervention being implemented.
A practical way to approach the requirements is:
1. Establish the applicable B-BBEE framework
Determine whether the organisation is measured under the Generic Codes or a relevant Sector Code.
2. Understand the Skills Development targets
Identify the expenditure, participation, outcome and sub-minimum requirements that apply to the organisation.
3. Select the appropriate learning programmes
Match learning interventions to genuine workforce and learner needs while understanding how those programmes can be recognised for B-BBEE purposes.
4. Address workplace skills planning requirements
Workplace skills planning may also affect recognition. For example, B-BBEE Commission guidance states that a QSE that is liable to contribute the 1% Skills Development Levy requires a SETA-approved Workplace Skills Plan before implementing the Skills Development element. Where such a QSE is exempt from the levy, a Skills Development plan and supporting proof are required for measurement. SETAs themselves have functions that include approving employers’ Workplace Skills Plans and promoting and registering learnerships.
5. Plan the evidence before implementation
Depending on the intervention, appropriate supporting evidence may include learner and programme records, invoices or accounting records, agreements, evidence of participation or completion, and relevant workplace skills planning documentation.
The precise evidence required will depend on the circumstances, but the principle is useful:
Verification evidence should be planned before training starts, not reconstructed at the end of the measurement period.
One simple framework brings the process together:
Framework → Target → Programme → Evidence
First establish which rules apply. Then understand what must be achieved. Select the learning intervention that genuinely fits the need. Finally, make sure the evidence required to support recognition is built into implementation.
How do learnerships contribute to B-BBEE Skills Development?
Learnerships combine structured learning with practical workplace experience and operate through an agreement involving the learner, employer and training provider. Learnership agreements must be registered with the relevant SETA.
Within B-BBEE Skills Development, they are particularly important because they connect structured learning, workplace participation and employment outcomes.
Under the Generic Codes, participation by Black people in learnerships, apprenticeships and internships forms a specific Skills Development indicator, while bonus points are available for absorption following qualifying programmes.
For employers, their potential value therefore extends beyond the scorecard. Learnerships can help develop occupational skills, create pathways into the workplace and provide learners with an opportunity to apply learning in a practical environment.
A useful way to think about them is:
Learnerships sit at the intersection of learning, workplace experience and employment opportunity.
They should therefore be planned as genuine structured learning interventions rather than simply as a mechanism for earning B-BBEE points.
Read more: How Learnerships Work in South Africa
How should employers plan Skills Development?
A strong Skills Development strategy starts with the capabilities the organisation actually needs, not with the scorecard.
The planning process can be simplified into five steps:
1. Identify the business need
Where are the organisation’s current and future skills gaps?
2. Identify the learner need
Who needs development, and what progression or occupational pathway makes sense for them?
3. Select the appropriate intervention
Determine whether the need is best addressed through a qualification, learnership, Skills Programme or another type of learning.
4. Confirm B-BBEE recognition
Establish how the intervention will be treated under the applicable Code and what evidence will be needed.
5. Plan implementation and measurement
Build programme requirements, workplace participation and documentation into the initiative from the outset.
This creates a more useful planning model:
Business need → learner need → programme choice → B-BBEE recognition → evidence
The strongest Skills Development strategies are those in which these elements reinforce one another.
Choosing the right Skills Development programmes
The right programme depends on the capability being developed, the learner and the level of workplace application required.
Employers should consider whether the programme is appropriately accredited or recognised, how relevant it is to the learner’s role or progression, whether workplace experience is required, whether a full qualification or more focused programme is appropriate, and how the intervention fits into the organisation’s broader Skills Development strategy.
This is particularly important as South Africa’s occupational training landscape continues to shift towards QCTO-aligned qualifications and Skills Programmes.
BESEC offers accredited Skills Development pathways across a range of occupational and business disciplines, including QCTO Qualifications, Skills Programmes and selected Legacy Qualifications.
Explore BESEC’s Skills Development Programmes →
* B-BBEE requirements can differ according to an organisation’s applicable Code and circumstances. The Generic Code figures discussed in this article should therefore not be assumed to apply to every organisation.