The Challenge of TVET Reform in MOZAMBIQUE Goals, Options and Constraints

Introduction Mozambique provides an example of steady economic recovery and social reconstruction after a prolonged period of war. Since 1992, the country has sustained a period of rapid economic growth and marked poverty reduction. Between 1997 and 2004, GDP growth averaged 9.4 percent, one of the highest growth rates in sub-Saharan Africa. Key factors in the recovery include a combination of external aid and large foreign investment projects, commonly referred to as the mega-projects. Economic forecasts indicate buoyant growth prospects for most sectors, but particularly in mining, transport, tourism, construction and services.

Introduction Over the same period, equally important achievements were recorded in human development indicators and poverty reduction. From 1996 to 2003, the proportion of people living in poverty declined from 69 percent to 54 percent and inequality, measured in real consumption, diminished across provinces and regions. However, notwithstanding the gains in poverty reduction, more than half of the country’s population of 20 million still lives in poverty.

Introduction It is estimated that Mozambique has a total work force of 9.6 million of which the vast majority (70%) are engaged in the agricultural sector, primarily working as subsistence farmers in the informal sector, followed by the trade and services sector which account for another 18 per cent. The manufacturing, mining and construction sectors, account for only about 5% of the total workforce. Overall, only 5-6 percent (520,000 people) are actively engaged in the formal sector. About 80% of the total formal sector employment is made up of trade and services (including public administration, education, health and social services) and with more than half geographically concentrated in Maputo city and Maputo province.

Introduction The technical education and vocational training system, which is responsible for shaping the skills profile demanded in the labor market, has been slow to respond to changing labor market demands in the formal sector. Employer surveys and labour market studies in formal sector enterprises point to a mismatch between the labour supply and the evolving needs of labour market, which require more skilled workers.

Provision of TVET in Mozambique TVET in Mozambique is primarily offered through government schools and training centres managed by a diverse number of different Ministries. More recently, some private training providers have entered the market and offer specialized training programs for their private sector clients (mostly new foreign investors), but these programs still only accommodate a minority of students in the TVET system. Accordingly, unlike other education sub-sectors which are managed and supervised under a single Ministry the TVET system involves a number of government Ministries and private sector partners that need to be drawn together under a single planning framework to give the system coherence and uniformity.

CONT. The actual system also offers little flexibility to stimulate a continuous upgrading of skills to respond to changing labour market needs or production innovation opportunities. The centralized decision-making structure in the formal TVET system, coupled with a generally weak management capacity at school and training institution level, contribute to the inefficient use of resources and limit public training providers from responding to the specific requirements of target groups and the needs of the local economic environment. The TVET system is almost entirely dependent on government resources

Categories Technical Education The largest single provider of TVET courses is the Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC) which offers full time pre-employment technical education course programs to children of school-going age through a network of 47 technical schools in which enrolment was about 45,000 students in 2005. This amounts to about one per cent of total enrolment in primary, secondary and technical education combined although, more significantly, it is about 15 per cent of the total secondary level student population

Categories Vocational Training In addition to the technical education courses provided by the MEC, there are also other providers of vocational training courses for employed and unemployed that are offered by various other Ministries and the private sector. The largest provider of vocational training is the Institute of Employment and Training (INEFP).

Government’s TVET Strategy Response In a Memorandum of Understanding of July 2004, the Ministers of Education, Labor and Higher Education and the Confederação das Associações Económicas de Moçambique (CTA) agreed to incorporate current and/or future interventions in the sector into an integrated TVET reform program. This partnership laid the foundation for the establishment of an Inter-ministerial Commission for TVET Reform (CIREP) and a National Public-Private Commission for TVET Reform (COREP) which was created by a government decree, in August 2005.

Government’s TVET Strategy Response The Board is supported by a full-time secretariat which is responsible for preparing policy advice, plans, guidelines and proposals for reforming the TVET system and for implementing its decisions. The Secretariat also acts as the project management unit for the first implementation phase of the TVET reform process (known as PIREP) during the period 2006-2011, which is financed by the World Bank and the Netherlands Cooperation with supplementary technical and financial support provided by GTZ, Spanish Cooperation and a number of other Cooperating Partners.

PIREP’s Development Objective PIREP’s Project Development Objective is to facilitate the transition to a demand-led training system and provide the beneficiaries with more market relevant skills and improved economic opportunities.

COMPONENTS PIREP has four components: A – Development of an Institutional Framework B – Standards-based Qualifications and Training System C – Quality Improvements in TVET Institutions D – Skills Development Fund (FUNDEC).

PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES The scope of the TVET reform process in Mozambique should not be underestimated. While there is an undisputed urgency to implement these reforms, many physical, financial, human and policy factors mitigate against the early implementation of the reforms, some of which are presented below. The Provision of Adequate Functioning TVET Facilities A new Competency Based Curriculum A critical shortage of competent teacher/trainers Institutional Capacity and Readiness to support the Reforms

Conclusions The first steps towards transforming this system have now been taken Questions still remain on whether the new arrangements are financially sustainable in the longer run after the financial support from the Bank and the others CPs are withdrawn. Government needs to develop a viable plan in cooperation with the donor community.

MUITO OBRIGADO