Following the NRF Review, in which it was recognised that the SACEMA Director needed support to oversee the  capacity building and postgraduate training, an experienced University teacher and educational consultant, Dr Gavin Hitchcock, was invited to visit SACEMA for a month to evaluate the whole training enterprise and give direction in capacity-building. After observing the working life of the SACEMA community, and conducting in-depth interviews with over forty people, including twenty SACEMA students, Dr Hitchcock submitted a report in July 2009.

Some major recommendations are summarised here. In view of the urgency of these tasks, and pending the appointment of a permanent training overseer, Dr Hitchcock was invited as Academic Visitor and consultant to SACEMA for six months, January to June 2010, to initiate implementation of some of the recommendations and prepare the way for a permanent training person. See Gavin Hitchcock's Full Report, July 2009.