Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (merSETA)

The Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (merSETA) is one of 21 SETAs set up under the Skills Development Act of 1998. merSETA covers manufacturing, engineering and related services, including the motor industry, and is based in Melville, Johannesburg.

Registered name

Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (merSETA)

Type

Sector Education and Training Authority (public entity)

Fields funded

Engineering, manufacturing and motor industry qualifications

Website

merseta.org.za

Email

bursaries@merseta.org.za

The size of the merSETA sector

Companies in merSETA’s sector employ about 600 000 people, and merSETA’s total levy income is approximately R1.308 billion. merSETA does not collect levies itself: the Department of Higher Education and Training passes collected skills levies to merSETA, which disburses 70% as grants and keeps 10% for administration.

A facilitator, not a trainer

merSETA does not train people directly. merSETA facilitates training by paying grants, registering moderators and assessors, identifying scarce skills, accrediting training providers, monitoring training quality and running projects to close the skills gap. merSETA says its aim is to address skills shortages, foster employment and alleviate poverty through collaboration with stakeholders and strategic funding.

Funding windows

Most merSETA funding flows through discretionary grant (DG) funding windows, which employers, training providers and institutions apply to. For 2026/27, merSETA extended its DG funding windows and opened special windows for specific initiatives and career awareness projects. merSETA has also commissioned an evaluation of the TVET and community college programmes it funds, and an applied research project called REVAMP on rural empowerment and vocational advancement.

How merSETA bursaries reach students

merSETA funds learnerships, apprenticeships and bursaries to build a skilled technical workforce for the manufacturing base, according to a provider record checked in August 2026. merSETA bursaries often run through partner universities, TVET colleges and employers rather than through one national call, so BursariesAfrica found no official merSETA call for 2027 when it checked.

How to research merSETA funding

Ask your university or TVET college financial aid office whether it holds a merSETA bursary allocation, because that is the most common route. Read merSETA’s notices section for funding windows, and check the QCTO database to confirm that a training provider offering a merSETA-funded course is accredited.

Apprentices should ask companies in the motor, metal and plastics industries whether they hold merSETA grants for artisan training.

Artisans in merSETA’s sector include fitters, turners, millwrights, electricians, boilermakers and motor mechanics, trades that remain in short supply across South African factories and workshops.

See our mechanical engineering bursaries and the SETA bursary guide.