In recognition of the critical role it played in emerging economies, the Ethiopian government has been pronouncing the importance of TVET to implement growth and transformation plan and invested significant financial and human resource to improve access, quality and relevance of the TVET programs.
Socio-economic development requires a competent labor force that is capable enough to perform tasks accordingly and ready to adjust to the ever changing organizational and work environment. To obtain such skilled manpower, governments invest in human resource development programs and engage in expanding education and training, which contributes to realizing the country’s developmental goals.
Abera Abate, Communication Director with Federal Technical and Vocational Training Agency said that to achieve the goals of Growth and Transformation Plan, the government has paid a great attention and set enabling strategy to Technical and Vocational Education and Training. It has also been expanding TEVT colleges throughout
the country.
He noted that currently there is at least one Technical and Vocational Education Training College at each woredas of the country.
As to him, TVET programs emphasize to provide students with skills, knowledge and attitudes that enable them engage in productive work, adapt to rapidly changing labor markets and economies.
He underscored that since it is launched in the country, TVET lacked effectiveness and efficiency so that many TVET graduates remained unemployed, even in occupational fields that showed a high demand for skilled manpower. To address this, government launched to evaluate the students by Center of Competency test (CoC).
Through enhancing the capacity of labor force in knowledge and skill, the Agency has been providing large number of trained youths for the industry and self employment, according to him.
“TVET in Ethiopia offers training starting from level one to second degree programs through providing COC test at each level.”
To encourage the graduates of the sectors, government gives the required support and priority for them to organize unemployed youths in Small and Micro enterprises.
The sector has also been paying immeasurable contribution through creating a lot of self employed people and transferring a technology. With the intention of boosting the effectiveness of the sector, the Agency has been working in concert with anchor international technological institutions.
Further, to enhance the capacity of students in terms of innovating technological products, it compels every graduating student to come up with innovative technological products. By doing this, a lot of technological products have been created”.
In addition to this, the government has been encouraging the innovators of different technological products in different ways mentioning that there are a lot of TVET students who received different rewards from higher government officials.
Professor Afework Kassu, State Minister with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education said that TVET in Ethiopia has been considered pivotal for the country’s overall development and improving the quality of life through skill development.
As to him, while the previous education curriculum focuses on providing knowledge for students, the current curriculum focuses on how to provide skill for trainers. He indicated that the current curriculum is very helpful to ensure the effectiveness of TEVT program.
Relatively TVET program is very helpful to create self-employed youths and to reduce unemployment.
Despite the commendable effort undertaken to realize quality based TVET, the implementation of the program has encountered various challenges, such as lack of skillful teachers and resources, and frequent changes in line with the curriculum.
Tashale Barecha, General Director of the Agency also said that so as to copy technology, the Agency has been building itself through the help of providing action oriented education.
He noted that Agency has been giving especial emphasize to research and technology transformation and 11 researches were conducted exclusively this year.
The Ethiopian Herald July 24/2019
BY TAMERU REGASA
