International Experience in Building a Cooperative Technical and Vocational Education and Training System

Lecture by Mr. Christian Widmann - The Ethiopian Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) system is currently being reformed with the aim of creating a demand-driven and outcome-based system. The engineering capacity building program (ecbp) supports this reform with a serial of lectures on TVET.

In order to benefit from international experience with cooperative training, ECBP-TVET has invited a German expert to Ethiopia to share his experience in establishing cooperative training in the Philippines. Mr. Christian Widmann, Project Manager for the GTZ project “Promotion of Vocational Training” in the Philippines, will talk about the implementation of a cooperative TVET system with the local business community and TVET institutions. Mr. Widmann has long-standing experience in strengthening the cooperation between enterprises and training providers in the area of TVET. 

The primary aims of the TVET reform are to promote public-private partnership in TVET and to improve training quality. The participation of enterprises in providing training is one crucial means of achieving these aims. In cooperative training, enterprises act as a second learning venue next to TVET providers. They thus actively share responsibility for the training delivery process. In the enterprise, trainees learn in the real-life environment of the workplace, thus acquiring the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities which are necessary to be able to compete on the labor market. Through cooperative training, graduates’ chances of finding gainful employment or being successfully self-employed are greatly improved.

 The lecture will take place on Thursday, 07 September 2006, at 3 pm at the Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce.

 Among those invited are representatives from the Ethiopian Employers’ Federation, the Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce, professional associations, the Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions, the Federal Civil Service Agency, the Ministry of Education, public and private TVET providers. The lecture will be followed by an informal gathering which will give the opportunity for more individual and in-depth discussions.

 TVET is one of the four components of the ecbp, an Ethiopian initiative to improve competitiveness and promote employment. University reform, quality infrastructure and private sector development are the other components that complete ECBP.