In an effort to promote the efficiency of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), the Workforce Development Authority (WDA) has announced plans to establish regional integrated centres across the country.

This was announced yesterday by the WDA Director General, Dr Jean Damascene Gatabazi, while presenting to stakeholders the various reforms which the authority has embarked on to boost the nation’s workforce.

Gatabazi disclosed that five Integrated Polytechnic Regional Centres (IPRCs) will be established in each province across the country to streamline TVET operations.
Gatabazi pointed out that the IPRCs will be mandated with supervision and coordination of all public TVET institutions in their respective regions.

"They will also ensure provision of competence-based training curriculum developed by WDA to all TVET institutions and implement TVET training courses focusing on skills for the unskilled and unemployed.”

Explaining the reforms, Fatina Mukarubibi, the acting Deputy Director General WDA said the old TVET system did not give room to multiple entry and exit of students under TVET, saying it was a dead end education pathway that had no strong participation of the private sector.

Marie Gasinzigwa, the head of science, technology and research in the Ministry of Education, said; "national TVET qualification framework should be put in place so that the technical students can also go for higher education.”

Mukarubibi said that with the new transformations, TVET students will be able to upgrade to university level after short courses.

She explained that the current inefficiency in vocational schools is due to low fees charged that cannot provide quality training.

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