The Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training has expressed concerns about the intellectual property (IP) dispute between the Media Information and Communication Technologies (MICT), which falls under the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs), and the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT).
This after the committee received a briefing from MICT on progress in the development and implementation of an integrated leaner management system (ILMS) for the post-school education and training (PSET) sector.
The ILMS is the Department of Higher Education and Training’s (DHET) effort to integrate the various systems used by post-school entities into the ILMS as a national shared services platform that would support a unified and integrated learner management ecosystem across the PSET sector. The ILMS will streamline learner lifecycle management, strengthen governance, improve reporting and enable secure, and real-time data sharing and collaboration among PSET institutions.
The ILMS is a joint initiative between the MICT SETA and TUT. However, a dispute arose between them about ownership of the IP of the ILMS. The system was built by TUT’s Faculty of Information and Communication Technology, making it the core developer.
The MICT SETA then obtained legal advice on the matter, which concluded that TUT owns the IP under the relevant law. MICT is now trying to resolve the matter amicably with TUT, potentially through co-ownership.
Members of the committee welcomed the briefing and the news that the ILMS development is progressing and is now being piloted in a couple of SETAs. However, the committee noted as a concern the leadership changes at MICT and the ongoing IP dispute as factors that could delay the project. It said these issue needs to be resolved as soon as possible.
Committee members also noted that without an integrated system, some learners in are double-dipping for bursaries in the National Skills Fund, the National Student Financial Aid Scheme and the SETAs.
The committee Chairperson, Mr Tebogo Letsie, said: “The Auditor-General found that some learner records were duplicated in the SETA system, with learners enrolled in more than one SETA programme in the same financial year. That is why the committee asked MICT to develop a system that can remove duplication from its records.”
MICT SETA told the committee that, on average, SETAs spend about R400 million every three to five years to roll out a new learner management system. It also said SETAs could save about R169 million if they all used one ILMS.
DHET previously used a system called Higher Education and Training Management Information System, which was implemented in 2012, with the intention to develop an integrated database for the PSET. This system comprised the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Management Information System, the Sector Education and Training Management Information System and the Community Education and Training Management Information System.
The committee also asked MICT SETA representatives what will happen should the system go off-line. MICT SETA replied that it has disaster recovery plans should their system be compromised. MICT SETA also noted that it has chosen the Dube Tradeport Data Centre in KwaZulu-Natal to provide primary, failover and disaster recovery for its data. The MICT warned that the lack of government-owned data centres exposes national data to sovereignty challenges.
Committee member Mr Gaolatlhe Kgabo said the committee does not believe there is buy-in from the Department of Higher Education and Training to use the new ILMS, while the memorandum of understanding (MOU) does not appear to legally binds the SETAs to use it.
The MICT SETA said it is currently engaged in a process to resolve the IP ownership dispute and the problems with the MOU with the objective of reaching an amicable co-ownership arrangement.
Jabulani Majozi
20 August 2026
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