Stakeholders and partners from all over Africa recently converged in the Ghanaian capital of Accra for the first-ever Africa Skills Week (ASW) hosted by the Government of Ghana and organised by the African Union (AU).
The five-days, which event brought together policymakers, practitioners, employers, development partners, civil society organisations and the youth, discussed policy priorities, challenges and opportunities in skills development.
Other strategic partners that supported the initiative included International Labour Organisation (ILO), UNESCO, UNHCR, German Cooperation implemented by GIZ, AUDA-NEPAD, Bridging Innovation and Learning in TVET (BILT), European Union and the World Bank.
The theme of the confab was "Skills and jobs for the 21st century: quality skills development for sustainable employability in Africa".
Africa Skills Week, according to the AU, aims to catalyse action towards improving systems, processes and policies to drive the transformation of skills development across the continent, so that Africa can be future-fit to adapt to the demands of the 21st century workplace.
The AU also aims to institutionalise ASW as part of a broader effort to implement its Agenda 2063 blueprint and build resilient, transformative education and skills ecosystems across Africa.
The initiative recognises that Africa's journey towards economic prosperity hinges on integrating education and skills development with skills opportunities which is a principle underscored by the AU CESA 2016-2025, the Africa Continental Strategy for TVET and the UN SDG4. These strategies emphasise the critical link between education, skills development and job creation.
As a member of the AU commissioned drafting team to develop the Africa Continental Technical and Vocational Education (CTVET) Strategy, Hon. Ousman Sillah, Secretary General of Sub-Saharan Africa Skills and Apprenticeship Stakeholders Network (SASASNET), was invited to serve as a panellist in one of the sessions.
He deliberated on the role of SASASNET in the effective implementation of this successor or revised Continental TVET Strategy.
Presenting on 'Information Sharing on the Development of the CTVET Strategy 2025-34 and Orientation on World Skills Africa', Sillah revealed that the bad news is that something is not right in terms of skills development in Africa and needs to be fixed.
"However, the first good news is that the country governments, African Union, development partners and the stakeholders in the skills ecosystem in the respective member countries have all recognised the existence of the challenge. The second good news is that the stakeholders are ready to evolve approaches to address the challenge and that one of them is the Africa Continental TVET Strategy that is developed." he added.
Hon. Sillah said SASASNET is a key stakeholder that is established to address three major challenges that inhibit the development of skills in Africa.
Dwelling on the first challenge, he acknowledged that 80 % of skills in Africa is in the informal sector that is largely neglected and needs recognition and support to be integrated into the system in order to realise its optimal potentials as a vehicle to accompany and engender the socio-economic development of the continent.
He cited the earlier presentation of Dr. Martha Phiri, Director of the African Development Bank, in which it is revealed that a study they commissioned have shown that out of every 10 children enrolled in the school system in Africa, it is only 3 that would complete or make it to tertiary level, while the other 7 drop out without acquiring the requisite knowledge and skills.
"What are we doing with this huge number of drops outs who are in 'Not in Education, Employment or Training' or NEET category. We in SASASNET believe it is quality apprenticeship that can cater for this large chunk of young people to enable them acquire the requisite skill, knowledge and opportunities to become productive and contribute to the sustainable development of our countries and continent," said Hon. Sillah.
The SASASNET SG added that studies have also shown formal TVET catering for only 20% of trainees, while the 80% are being trained in the informal settings such as the corner street auto-mechanic garages, tailoring, carpentry and welding workshops that are not recognised in terms of certification or competence.
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He argued that something needs to be done to prioritise skills and apprenticeship development in order to take advantage of Africa's demographic dividend, unlock the potentials of the youth to drive social inclusion, create employment, address poverty and generate sustainable socio-economic growth across the continent.
Hon. Sillah also identified the other challenge in Africa as the lack of dialogue among stakeholders in the skills ecosystem at the national level.
"Each of the various stakeholders are operating in their own silos and not talking to each other. SASASNET is coming to serve as a platform, conduit, vehicle, instrument and meeting place for all the stakeholders to come together and talk to each other to identify common concerns and challenges in order to evolve common strategies and approaches to address them," said the SG of the continental organisation.
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