Policy
A Dual Training Policy which provides a roadmap of how to combine apprenticeship and vocational education will soon be submitted to the Cabinet for approval, Principal Secretary in the State Departments for TVETs Dr Esther Muoria has revealed.
According to the PS, also to be presented alongside the policy is a Cabinet Memo detailing strategies to incentivize industries involved in dual training programme.
In a speech read on her behalf by the Director of Projects and Partnership at the State Department John Tuwei during the fifth graduation ceremony of the Mathenge Technical Training Institute in Nyeri, the PS said that the document was in the final stages of formulation ahead of its presentation to the cabinet.
She noted that ratification of the two documents would go a long way in ensuring that dual training is fully enshrined in Technical and Vocational Education Training institutions (TVETs). “Dual Training Programme aims at bridging the gap between training and the industry thereby addressing the aspects of relevance. In addition, it forms strategic collaborations with the industry and ensure that TVET curricula aligns seamlessly with the dynamic needs of the industries,” said Dr Muoria
She added: “The policy is in the final stages and soon it will be submitted to the Cabinet for approval. This will go a long way in ensuring that dual training is fully anchored in TVET institutions”. The government has since June 2023, been rolling out the programme which she said would bridge the gap between the training offered in TVETs and the demands of the job industry.
Further, the PS noted that it would also address the aspects of relevance as the State shifts from traditional class-based theoretical learning to a hybrid which will give TVET students a chance to spend 30 per cent of their training in class and the other 70per cent in industry mentorship.
“Currently, under the collaboration of GIZ-Kenya, dual training is being implemented in 65 TVET institutions with a projected gradual expansion to roll out the programme in all TVET institutions,” she said. On his part, Tuwei reiterated the government’s commitment to strengthening technical training in the country.
Some of the 2600 grandaunts who were awarded with Certificates and Diplomas march to the graduation square during the fifth graduation ceremony of the Mathenge Technical Training Institute in Nyeri county.
He explained that the government was keen on re-establishing a robust TVET sector as way of according the country’s youth with an opportunity to contribute in national development by using their skills to produce products or work as employees in the technical sector.
“We are sending one message that the youth from this country can walk into TVETs, gain a skill and go and produce for industry. We are also sending you into that space so that you can either participate by being employed or you can start your own enterprise and employ others,” said Tuwei.
During the ceremony, a total of 2,600 graduands were awarded with Certificates and Diplomas in different fields. The institute’s Principal Michael Njungu said the institution had embraced the Competency Based Education Training (CBET) by rolling out 48 CBET courses.
Additionally, he said that the training institute was collaborating with GIZ Kenya to implement the Dual Training model across all its departments.
“We have successfully implemented the dual training model across five departments. We started in May 2024 and we have now moved to the second cohort. This hands on approach bridges the gap between theory and practicals, ensuring that our students are job-ready upon graduation,” said Njungu.
On Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), Njugu said that Mathenge Technical Training Institute was on its way to becoming an assessment centre. He said that Technical and Vocational Education Training Authority has already assessed the institution for accreditation.
The RPL Policy Framework which was launched in March this year aims to transform the education sector by assessing and certifying skills acquired through formal, informal and non-formal training. Njungu said that the initiative would provide skilled individuals in the informal sector an opportunity to have their competencies formally recognized.
In addition, he said that the framework would open doors for career advancement opportunities which were previously denied due to lack of certification. “We have quite a number of people from masons, to carpenters and dressmakers who have skills but do not have certificates. These are the people we would like to guide so that they can get certificates and help themselves to get opportunities in the job marked,” stated Njungu.