Another casualty of the coronavirus pandemic in South Africa is the recruitment and selection processes of the national defence force.
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) this week said due to COVID-19 it took a decision to temporarily suspend all recruitment drives and selection boards planned for the remainder of 2020. The decision includes the suspension of the scheduled Military Skills Development System (MSDS) selection boards for 2020.
defenceWeb is assured the selection boards for volunteers for next year’s intake will take place.
“There will be recruits selected to undergo the MSDS (military skills development system),” Brigadier General Sandra Lekalakala, Director: Human Resource Acquisition for the Human Resource Division of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) said.
“Human Resources is not able to provide statistics for the number of volunteers who submitted MSDS application forms for the 2021 intake due to the services (air force, army, military health and navy) still submitting data for capturing,” she said, adding the selection boards for the two-year service period will “take place” in all nine provinces.
The number of successful volunteers will be available when the selection boards conclude their work.
Last year’s MSD intake of 1 704 young men and women was just over 1.2% of the 133 278 applicants. Over the last five years more than 600 000 applications for voluntary military service were submitted. Less than 10 000 – under 1.5% – were accepted.
Lekalakala said this week no “exact dates” had yet been set for selection boards to start sitting, with indications they could commence work by the end of next month (September).
“The Directorate: Human Resource Acquisition and the services, in conjunction with SA Military Health Service (SAMHS) are re-planning dates and an instruction will be distributed in due course,” she said.
Once the instruction is received by the four services “selected candidates will be invited by means of bulk messages to attend selection boards” in all nine provinces.
The delay, laid firmly at the door of restrictive regulations imposed in terms of the national state of disaster, will in all probability see the planned January 2021 intake postponed for six months.
Other annual SANDF recruitment drives at events such as the Rand and Bloemfontein shows could not take place this year.
