Itrisa - International Trade Institute of South Africa

Business Focus

ITRISA (the International Trade Institute of Southern Africa) is an association incorporated under Section 21 which offers a wide range of services to individuals, companies and public sector organisations wishing to develop or enhance their international business capabilities. ITRISA is registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as a private higher education institution under the Higher Education Act, 1997 (registration certificate no. 2002/HE08/001) and is fully accredited by the Council on Higher Education (CHE) which is the SAQA-mandated quality assurance body for the higher education sector in South Africa.

ITRISA has three main areas of specialisation:

	short training courses: ITRISA conducts short, public courses and workshops in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, as well as in-house training in all provinces (on request) covering a wide range of international trade-related topics, e.g. international transport modes, shipping logistics, customs procedures, costing and pricing, payment methods and risk management, documentation, market access requirements and international contractual issues. The in-house training option, with its flexible yet thorough approach, is becoming increasingly popular.
	distance education: ITRISA's comprehensive distance education programme comprises three different courses to suit a range of interests and/or career aspirations : the 1-year Certificate in International Trade, the 2-year Advanced Certificate in International Trade (Exports) or (Imports), and the 3-year Diploma in International Trade Management (Exports) or (Imports). Each course affords participants valuable insights into how the trading environment works as well as the opportunities and challenges facing international trade practitioners today. Participants on the programme have a variety of educational and commercial backgrounds and are drawn not only from South Africa but from other countries in southern Africa and beyond.
	educational/trade consultancy: ITRISA's consultancy activities are heavily geared towards boosting the trade knowledge and capacity of local organisations. Projects in recent years have ranged from investigating stumbling blocks to effective international trade performance within private concerns and recommending appropriate solutions, to contributing to the development of international trade strategies for local and provincial government. In this regard, ITRISA counts amongst its strengths the ability to develop programmes and strategies that keep pace with the changes taking place internationally but at the same time address local conditions and concerns.