By Francis Ntow
Accra, Aug. 31, GNA – Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) reforms are increasingly influencing policy decisions in several African countries, including Ghana, Niger, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Uganda.
Ethiopia has revised its national aid and TVET strategy, reaching about 27,000 people, while Uganda has enacted a TVET Act that provides five-year funding for trainers and strengthens private-sector participation, artificial intelligence (AI), agriculture and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) coordination.
The developments were highlighted at the annual review webinar of the Youth Employment and Skills Pan-African Coalition for Transformation (YES-PACT), a partnership between the Mastercard Foundation and the African Centre for Economic Transformation (ACET), implemented in six African countries.
Ms Amare Matebu Kassa, Lead Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), Ethiopia, said recommendations from YES-PACT had contributed to a breakthrough in the country’s national aid strategy.
She said Ethiopia had moved into implementation, with regular engagements involving the Ministry of Labour and Skills, senior officials and sector experts to advance the national TVET strategy, which began about six months ago.
“The TVET implementation process has also triggered evaluation of systemic digitalisation in Ethiopia, through meetings with stakeholders such as the Artificial Intelligence Institute of Ethiopia, to assess how much has been implemented, what challenges remain, and what action plans are needed,” she said.
Ms Kassa said agreed action plans had been developed to address identified gaps, with clear roles for organisations within the TVET ecosystem, areas for collaboration and measures to raise awareness of key gaps and recommendations.
She identified private-sector engagement as a key implementation strategy, citing extensive engagement that reached about 27,000 people through a nationwide study.
Ms Madina Guloba, Senior Research Fellow at the Economic Policy Research Centre, said Uganda had spent the past three years implementing a competence-based curriculum, which required a smooth transition, increased funding and continuous capacity building.
She said by the time the team planned to launch its report in 2026, the Government had already enacted a new TVET Act three months earlier, incorporating findings and recommendations from the impact evaluation.
Ms Guloba said the Act anchored TVET more firmly in policy and implementation, with the private sector assigned a leading role in delivery, systems development and skills training.
She said the legislation was also driving discussions on financing, delivery, assessment and coordination, with efforts to diversify partnerships involving the TVET Council, Operations and Management, and Assessment Board, while integrating ICT and AI technologies to accelerate training.
Ms Mona Iddrisu, Lead for Youth Employment and Skills at ACET, said YES-PACT had served for four years as a reference point for policymakers in six countries by responding to their technical needs.
“Buildingon last year’s well-received TVET systems report and earlier work on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the coalition pivoted to showcase TVET’s role in industrialisation,” she noted.
Ms Iddrisu said partners had navigated implementation challenges by using engagements with practitioners to address practical issues, including financing and aligning curricula with labour market demands.
Ms Eunice Muthengi, Director for Learning and Evidence Insights at the Mastercard Foundation, said YES-PACT had provided governments with technical support by responding to policymakers’ challenges.
She said the Foundation, as it marked its 20th anniversary, remained committed to enabling 30 million young Africans, 70 per cent of them young women, to access dignified work by 2030, using evidence to guide its interventions.
Ms Muthengi urged participating countries to reflect on lessons learned, embrace innovation and use actionable evidence to influence policy decisions and maximise collective impact amid growing global uncertainty.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
Reporter: Francis Ntow
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