Vocational education and training for inclusive growth in development cooperation

Tools & Methods Series - Reference document n°24

This reference document was commissioned by the Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development (DEVCO) Migration, Employment, Inequalities Unit. This document is addressed to EU staff working at Headquarters and in Delegations, and to national partners and donors engaged in promoting reforms in the vocationaleducation and training (VET) and skills developmentsector. It is based on the past experiences of the European Union (EU) and its member states in providing support for the VET sector to countries cooperating with the European Commission (EC).

The document is designed to serve as a practicaltool and reference guide for identifying, formulating, implementing, and monitoring and evaluating EU initiatives to support VET reforms in developing countries. It follows a 2013 study that looked specifically at EU support to technical and VET and skills developmentin EU development cooperation. The overall objective of this study was to provide a comprehensive picture of tools and methods used to implement VET projects across the EC’s development cooperation portfolio. This was achieved through an accurate mapping and analysis of the state of play of VET actions and reforms in EC development cooperation, with distinct attention given to the youth perspective.

The first part of this reference document gives a broad overview of international concepts, policies and EU approaches towards an engagement in VET reforms. It discusses internationally accepted VET definitions and explains the importance of VET for economic and social development. The outline of challenges VET reforms are facing sets out a ramework for an evidence-based VET sector review, leading to systemic building blocks that are considered to be of strategic importance for EC-supported VET reform programmes. The final chapter of Part I looks at the EU approach to support VET reforms in developing countries.

Part II contains 13 practical guidance notes for making VET system development work in practice, with a view towards identifying entry points for EU supportin terms of policy dialogue and operational support. Each guidance note consists of a summary of key messages, an overview of the topic and ‘how to’ steps, complemented by examples and case studies from VET systems in developing countries. EU staff engaged in supporting VET rojects can use the guidance notes to structure their dialogue with partner governments on topics related to VET systems development.

The reference document was prepared by consultant Werner Heitmann. The work was coordinated and completed by the DEVCO Migration, Employment, Inequalities Unit.