It was founded in 1996 by the main union federations, and is mandated to provide programmes that develop union capacity, provide workers and trade unionists access to higher education, recognise workers' experiential knowledge, and promote critical thinking and activism.
[1] DITSELA was described in a 2007 International Labour Organization report as the 'largest union education institute in Africa'.
[3] It was subsequently joined by the National Council of Trade Unions (NACTU).
DITSELA runs five main programmes, including a Women’s Leadership Development Programme (WLDP), and the DITSELA Advanced National Labour Education Programme (DANLEP), the latter having graduated more than 1,000 people from its inception to 2011.
DITSELA's main funder, however, is not the unions but the state.