Although vocational education is considered as a path taken by academic failures, the global trend is changing this perception as the global education policy shifts to technical and vocational education. Globally, conventional schooling is gradually giving way to Vocational Education and Training. And this trend is not any different in Rwanda.

Seven years since the TVET programme reforms were carried out in 2008, the number of TVET institutions has more than doubled from about 70 TVET schools to 365 today. Out of the 365, about 105 are privately owned. Education experts say that more investors in education are targeting TVET because it is fast becoming the preferred choice for learners who want to acquire employable skills.

Government moves to ease private investment in TVET

The government policy on TVET provides incentives for private investors as a measure to improve the quality of education while ensuring continuity.

Because TVET requires substantial financial resources, Jerome Gasana, the director General of Workforce Development Authority, says that several funding options are provided as part of the efforts to facilitate more private investment in TVET education.

"Over 60 per cent of the current TVET schools are privately owned,” Gasana said.

Gasana argues that since TVET education provides skills needed to fill gaps within a wide range of industrial setups, it should be prioritised by investors in the education system. 

He notes that, the more private TVET schools emerge, the more they boost the economy through creating more jobs for young people.

Government through the Ministry of Education is looking at having 60 per cent of students enroll in TVET schools while 40 per cent go for conventional education. The target for achieving this is 2017.

A number of exemptions have been made available for private investors in TVET.  The government policy on TVET provides that private entrepreneurs benefit from financial support, fiscal exemption such as exemption from paying employers’ and salary tax owed to social security basing on the number of trainees supervised.

Also there is a possibility of discussing the training levy proportional to the size of the investment and the number of people trained by the enterprise.

Because of such exemptions, TVET is registering growth in both the number of students as well as the courses offered.

Irene Nsengiyumva, the deputy director in charge of training at WDA says that more than 83,000 students are enrolled in TVET institutions which represent a 12 per cent increase compared to the previous year.

"Participants are enrolled in Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centers (IPRCs), Technical Secondary Schools (TSSs) and Vocational Training Centers (VTCs),” Nsengiyumva said.

Also, courses offered and examined in these institutions have gone up to 139 from 114 in 2013 and 108 in 2012 respectively.

VET on the increase in the developed world.

In the modernised world, conventional schooling has gradually given way to state and national Vocational Education and Training (VET) systems. In Europe, the UK, Australia, Japan, China, the United States, India, Malaysia and Canada, VET systems have turned these countries into the world’s most industrialised nations. Despite the pressure to follow an academic pathway, over the past decade, participation in VET in school has grown. For example in Australia it has grown from a fifth to half of all senior secondary students.

In Finland the number of students applying to enter secondary vocational education has risen to 30%. Last year, for the first time, the number entering vocational education was higher than the number entering general education in their secondary schools.

Trainers and tutors react

According to Diogene Mulindahabi, the Principal of IPRC Kikukiro, a government aided institution that has trained over 3,000 students, technical and vocational training is the way to go as it offers sufficient skills needed for the job market. However, he cautions that institutions should only enroll learners commensurate to the facilities.

"In vocational education a student gets sufficient training, which is critical on the labour market, but vocational schools should not enroll more students than the facilities they have,” Mulindahabi explains.

Derrick Kamuhanda, an instructor in the Electronic Department at SOS, one of the privately owned TVET Schools in Kigali explains that, investing in technical schools is better than any other form of schools because it improves creativity among individuals.

Just like Mulindahabi, Kamuhanda also maintains that it is important to take up few students in one institution since this allows sufficient training.

"For sufficient hands on skills, only a limited number of students need to be handled in a single class session,” Kamuhanda cautions.

Call to address the increasing numbers

Since the number of students interested in offering TVET courses is increasing, there is need to establish more institutions.

Although government is ready to forge partnerships with private investors, the biggest challenge still remains financial support.

Erick Niyongabo, the adviser to the state minister in charge of TVET says that government alone cannot succeed as far as its objectives are concerned because of the limited financial resources but there are means to establish more institutions.

"In order to strengthen our efforts in providing technical skills, all possible opportunities to encourage the private investors are available,”Niyongabo stressed.

While, the TVET system seeks to train job creators and not just job seekers, the availability of skills is not enough for students who want to venture into self employment as they often fail to get financial support to start their own businesses.

Niyongabo however adds that: "Much as there is no direct support for all TVET graduates, there is a plan of helping those who come up with well planned and written project proposals.”

How to improve education quality

Ananias Ruchende Kananura

The curriculum should always be changed depending on the needs of society. For example if there is high demand for ICT specialists, the curriculum should be adjusted to serve that purpose.

Gaspari Niwabine

Regular visits by ministry of education officials is the only way to establish whether the quality of education meets the standards or falls short. Officials should besides observing, interact with students to get their opinion about their teachers and schools.

Ivan Okibariho

Examinations are the mode of assessment in the country. Because many TVETs have oral and practical exams, there’s a bit of cram work by students. How I wish they could scrap the oral bit and make it purely practical.

Kyakulaga Kizito

I believe people can do better if they change their attitude towards technical schools. It doesn’t hurt to enrol for a course in say carpentry or mechanics after completing university to increase their marketability.

Amellah Ninshaba

If we are to improve the quality of education in technical institutions we must review the syllabus and sensitise the public about the benefits of acquiring life skills. Once people have all that information, they will join these institutions in big numbers. Effort should also be put in developing language skills.

Yubu Kamuhanda

Since Rwanda Education Board is revising the national curriculum, they should also tackle the issue about the quality of vocational education. I, for one, think they should introduce regular trainings in entrepreneurship. With these skills, one can easily start a business and run it well.