TECHNICAL & VOCATIONAL EDUCATION and TRAINING (TVET) SECTOR MAPPING For the Dutch Schokland TVET programme

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1 November 2008 TECHNICAL & VOCATIONAL EDUCATION and TRAINING (TVET) SECTOR MAPPING For the Dutch Schokland TVET programme Kenya 1. Introduction In most developing countries, TVET still constitutes a marginal sub-sector in the education system. The TVET sector tends to generate little attention or budget provision, resulting in poor infrastructure and facilities, and a low status overall. Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRSPs) and donor policies have preferred to focus on primary and higher education, with the implication that youngsters, in particular those from marginalized groups, who complete primary education have limited access to relevant further secondary or vocational schooling. TVET programmes are defined as those that are designed mainly to prepare students for direct entry into particular occupations or trades, or into a class of occupations and trades. The successful completion of such programmes normally leads to a vocational qualification that is relevant to the labour market and recognised by the relevant authorities (e.g. the Ministry of Education (MoE) and employers associations) in the country in which it is obtained (UNESCO 2007:395). The poor link between formal or non-formal vocational education and the labour market means that education is not perceived to be highly relevant. Moreover, youngsters who do complete their education encounter difficulties when integrating into the labour market, as their qualifications and skills do not match companies requirements. Vocational education as such thus provides no guarantee of employment, and developing countries are struggling with high youth unemployment rates as a result. Instead of contributing to economic development, these youngsters bear a high risk of ending up in crime or prostitution. It is particularly difficult for marginalised groups to access the labour market or to find a decent job. These groups include girls and women, the disabled, people suffering from serious health conditions (e.g. malnutrition, HIV/Aids), ethnic groups, or people living in remote areas or fragile states. Vocational education has enormous potential to contribute to development and poverty alleviation, even though its potential has not yet been realised. Despite the sector s inadequacy as a whole, a wide variety of organisations and institutions have gained a great deal of experience in their particular areas, whether these are schools and community-based organisations or NGOs in both developed and developing areas. 2. Rationale of the Mapping Study In year 2000, government leaders of 189 countries agreed on serious efforts on poverty reduction and to achieve eight concrete development goals, better known as The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In 2007, half way towards 2015, our new government decided to boost achieving the MDGs through a common effort of all ministries. Minister B. Koenders argued that the international community is behind on achieving the MDGs and launched Project 2015 on 30 June 2007 through an event at Schokland, a former island. The Pact of Schokland, part of Project 2015, aims to catch up to be on track with these MDGs. The strategy of Schokland is to enhance Dutch efforts for development cooperation, and not only by traditional parties, but also by other agencies which are not yet involved, like the business sector. In total 36 agreements between ministries, civil society organizations, companies and other partners have been signed ( all together the Pact of Schokland. 1

2 Improved access to good Technical and Vocational Education (TVET) in developing countries is one of these agreements and 15 parties undersigned the paper. Meanwhile, in the first months of 2008, a project Improving access to good Technical and Vocational Education (TVET) in developing countries, has been submitted to and awarded for funding by the Schokland Fund (see appendix 1). This project aims to both increasing access to and the improving the quality and relevance of vocational education, by means of twinning and the intensive exchange of knowledge and insights between Southern and Northern organisations. In both the South and the North, potential participants include (vocational) educational institutes, advisory councils and consultants, actors from the business sector, community-based organisations (CBOs), and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). In the South, links are planned with local and national governmental bodies, and with the Royal Dutch Embassies (education and economic specialists). The main objective is to improve access to good-quality vocational education in developing countries. Overall, the project is aiming to achieve the following results: 1. Access to TVET improved in selected areas in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya and Zambia. 2. Quality of TVET available improved in selected areas in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya and Zambia. 3. A broad international network is established, which is open to new parties, leading to linking and learning on a regular basis. 4. Vocational education providers in the South (and in the North) strengthened both institutionally and in terms of capacity. 5. Awareness raised in Dutch society, especially in schools, among students, and the business sector, about the importance of access to good vocational education for youngsters in developing countries, leading to common fundraising strategies for educational and development organisations. Four country proposals form the basis of the project, on top of which the overall network will function as a platform for linking and learning. Each country proposal has hypothetically set its own objectives and results, all within the overall framework of the main proposal. A first important, strategic activity to be undertaken in all four selected countries will be to map existing stakeholders and their interests in TVET; past experiences and good practices regarding demand and supply of TVET; and strong and weak elements of the TVET sector. The importance of this mapping exercise lies in the establishment of relevancy for future partnerships activities. The results of the mapping process will function as a guide for the further development of country and partnership proposals, which may need to be modified or updated. 3. Objectives of the Mapping As this mapping exercise is a first step in the process of developing a coordinated approach in the area of TVET, it will have the character of a fact-finding and identification study / mission in search of potential areas of support. The objective of the mapping is to describe the policy environment and the current situation regarding demand and supply of TVET, as well as to identify the performances, problems, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, lessons learned and options for (coordinated) support for the TVET sector in the selected countries. In addition, the mapping describes the main policies, actors and practices of the labour market and the relation of vocational education and work. A pre-selection and analysis of key documents has taken place (see section 5 and 6). A gapanalysis demonstrates the missing information. To enhance efficiency, the consultant is stimulated to make use of the documents added in this annex, which leaves more time for doing small scale research on missing data. The consultancy team is expected to produce a report which: a. Analyses the context of the labour market and the TVET sector: facts, figures, trends and performances (TVET sector). Also quality aspects should be taken into account. The report 2

3 should look at both the supply and the demand side (e.g. have a look at present qualification frameworks and the way the present curriculum is focussed on the labour market). b. Analyses the prospects on the labour market and employment rates. Formal and informal economy, type of main labour, divided in rural and urban contexts. Included is an analysis of (youth) employment and employment opportunities for school leavers, facilities related to the transition from school to work. c. Assesses lessons learned from past experiences, concrete results achieved in terms quality of TVET, numbers of skilled workforce available for the labour market in the last decades, the transition from education to the labour market. In addition, the report includes an assessment of good practices adopted and alternative approaches to be pursued for improvement in the future. d. Reviews and evaluates in retrospective the experience of vocational education in terms of processes adopted and policy and practical challenges confronted both at (macro and micro) levels. e. Analyses key players and their relevant policies and intervention strategies: the government, knowledge institutions, private sector, including local civil society actors and international donors and NGOs. What is the role of the labour market in relation to TVET (refer to both formal as the informal economy, and formal as non-formal TVET)? Role and function of knowledge and resource institutions, if involved. f. Determines the strengths and weaknesses of different actors. g. Provides several options for better coordination among different actors and/or for improving responsiveness to the specific needs that exist in the labour market. h. Presents ideas for the way forward: from understanding to practical support. 4. Scope of the Work and Issues to be studied The study / mission should view the whole of the (selected) country with a focus on marginalised, disabled, disadvantaged groups and disaggregate for differences in gender as much as possible. Thematically the emphasis should be on both formal as non-formal Technical & Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and on both the formal as informal economy. Issues Gender specific data regarding access to TVET, transition to the labour market, access to the labour market, type of work. Inclusive education A focus on Western Kenya (meaning Rift Valley, Naivasha, Nyanza, Western Province) from Nairobi) Specific data regarding rural/urban areas. Capacity issues Position / role and political space of private sector, including civil society in planning, implementing and monitoring & evaluation 5. Primary literature resources The following documents can be of use during the mapping: MoEST (2005) KESSP Chapter 19, Technical, Industrial, Vocational and entrepreneurship training investment programme This chapter describes in brief the issues that the TIVET system is facing. Also, it describes the policy framework on TIVET with its objectives and strategies to improve TIVET. MoST (2007) Strategic Plan

4 MoEST (2005) Sessional Paper No.1 of 2005, Policy Framework for Education, Training and Research. Meeting the challenges of Education, Training and Research in Kenya in the 21 st century. URL: MoEST (April 2007) Kenia: rehabilitation and upgrading of 19 technical training institutes and 16 institutes of technology for the MoEST (PESP05036). URL: MoEST (2003) National Action Plan on Education for All Chapter 5: TIVET This chapter describes the objectives, issues and challenges and the planned interventions of TIVET in Kenya. It also does provide a SWOT on the TIVET sector. This document is from year 2003 and should be used with care. Woord& Daad (2006) Analysis of vocational education and training, Kenya. This document provides a brief overview of the TIVET sector by gathering different pieces of documents. No analysis is done, and data should be used with care. However, it can be useful for basic data or sources. 6. Further data collection required The above documents refer to the various issues of interest in this mapping. However, certain issues may not be covered in the reports, which therefore may require further investigation (literature study or primary data collection). The figure below demonstrates what information is covered in the literature (++ covered, +/- somewhat covered, -- not covered at all). The issues covered (++ or +) may just require a summary. Subjects with less qualification (+/-, -, --) may require further literature study or in case no literature is available, primary data collection. Formal TVET Non formal TVET Context: general, policies, strategies, sector ++ - plans, private sector Performance analysis: facts, figures, trends ++ - Major stakeholders and approaches - - Analysis of policies and intervention strategies +/- - of main actors Key challenges of TVET sector and labour + / - market Curriculum focused on labour market - - Options for improving responsiveness to labour - - market needs Demand side (LM) / supply side - / + - Lessons learned, best practices, concrete results - - SWOT analysis TVET + (2003) - 7. Process and approach The consultant provides a working approach and a process description of the mapping prior to the contract signing. 8. Content outline 4

5 This mapping is part of a larger mapping exercise, undertaken in Ghana, Ethiopia, Kenya and Zambia. There is no objective of making one overall document. However, it is desirable to be able to make easy comparisons between the context analysis of the four counties. Therefore, a fixed content outline is drafted, and it is highly appreciated to use this content outline. Nevertheless, some additional paragraphs may be desired to describe local issues. The mapping report will be a maximum of 25 pages. The mapping includes an analysis of the most urgent priority-issues, which are of interest for the programme to focus on. These priorities can be subject of discussion during the validation workshop. In the end, the objective is to reach a shared analysis and shared analysis of the needs related to TVET and the labour market. Outline mapping report 1. General introduction 2. Formal and non-formal TVET sector in Kenya a. Facts and figures b. Policies c. Education Sector Plan d. Main actors e. Key donors and their interventions f. Demand and supply g. Issues 3. Labour market in Kenya a. Facts and figures b. Policies c. Formal / informal economy d. Employment / unemployment rates. Focus on youth, gender. e. Main actors (private sector, supporting agencies) f. Transition from school to work. Existing approaches to improve transition g. Demand and supply from the labour market h. Issues 4. Lessons learned from previous interventions / approaches. Good practices. 5. Practical and policy challenges 6. SWOT of key actors of TVET and labour market 7. Opportunities for the future for improved harmonization of different actors (TVET institutes, labour market, donor organizations) 8. The way forward: from understanding to practical support. Recommendations & niches. 9. Validation workshop Part of the assignment include presenting the mapping document at the validation workshop and the writing of a final report. This workshop is a one-day meeting aimed at validating the mapping as presented by the consultant. 10. Contract details In case the mapping is carried out by more than one consultant, Edukans will sign a contract with one consultant, referred to as the lead consultant. The lead consultant will be held responsible for communication and contract issues with the other consultant(s) involved. 5