SA Finance Sector Reports Professional Shortage

November 18 - Landelahni Recruitment Group commissioned a survey to study the financial services sector in South Africa, and showed that there is a shortage of skilled and professional people across the board.

According to the survey, which examined industries such as insurance and accounting, more professionals are required to kick start the financial services sector, if it hopes to recover from the global recession and make a good jump into 2011.

Perhaps the most blatant shortage was in the accounting industry, where firms reported a staggering 82% shortage of chartered accountants.

In the past 11 years, an average of 6041 students graduated each year with degrees or diplomas in the finance sector.

These included 5,465 chartered accountants, 511 in the banking and finance sector and 65 in the insurance and risk graduate sector.

According to the Chief Executive Officer of Landelahni, Sandra Burmeister, "this is not enough to meet demand, particularly since the financial services sector is competing for these skills with businesses across the board."

South Africa, however, is not alone in reported shortages. A recent survey of 17 different countries around the world showed that 56% of the 5,000 companies surveyed were having trouble finding skilled and professional workers.

Burmeister said: "For several years, South Africa has lost accounting professionals, along with auditing, risk management and economics professionals, as well as engineers and information technology specialists, all of whom are in short supply around the world, and subject to offshore poaching by developed and developing economies."

"These professional skills are highly mobile and in demand across all business sectors globally, not only in financial services," she added.