Ethio Skills’ 99 : Promoting Excellence Through Competition

As part of its mission to encourage the ongoing reform of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Ethiopia will host a skills competition for the first time in its history:

Ethio Skills’ 99 : Promoting Excellence Through Competition

Date: 18^th-20^th of November, 2006

Place: Addis Ababa Exhibition Center

Time: 9.00 am

As part of its mission to encourage the ongoing reform of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Ethiopia will host a skills competition for the first time in its history: Ethio Skills’99. From Saturday 18^th and Sunday 19^th of November, 2006 at the Addis Ababa Exhibition Center, TVET students, coming from six different regions - Addis Ababa, Amhara, Dire Dawa, Oromia, SNNPR and Tigray -, will compete in the six following trades:

• Brick laying

• Dress making

• Food preparation

• Furniture making

• Hair dressing

• IT application

Selected innovative works by TVET students and a technical and vocational exhibition, where both private and public institutions take part, will also be displayed while the contestants perform their tasks.

The main objective of such an innovative event is to promote skills among trainees and enhance their capabilities to reach a higher degree of proficiency. Hence, achieving better prepared professionals would contribute to the development of industries as well as the economy.

Ethio Skills’99 is a pioneer Ethiopian Skills Competition undertaken as a model project powered by the engineering capacity building (ecbp) and coordinated by the Addis Ababa City Government Education Bureau.

Every two years, winners from the national skills competition in 42 countries gather together to compete in the international World Skills competition. Ethiopia will have the chance of being part of this international competition early in the new millennium, thanks to this unique event which will be the first step in the race to this goal.

On Monday the 20^th of November, 2006 at 6.30 pm, the closing ceremony of the Ethio Skills’99 will be an exciting night where three important events will take place:

• The ‘TVET Blue Pages’ will be introduced to the public. This document is a complete guide of all TVET institutions in the country with details about courses, prices and other relevant information.

• The awards will be given to the winners of each trade. A special prize will be reserved for the so called ‘Best of the Best TVET Award’.

• TVET students from Ziway will present their designs in a fashion show with their own choreographies. Afterwards, the designs will be sold to the public.

Ethio Skills’99 intends to create awareness about TVET among the public and to establish the TVET skills competition in Ethiopia. It is a superb opportunity to participate in the reform that will bring excellence to the country through the competition.

End of the Press Release