New TVET fund to ensure high skilled labor force in Rwanda

Elias Hakizimana Nov 22, 2022 0 Comments

By Elias Hakizimana.

The European Union in partnership with Rwanda’s Ministry of Education have launched a new study on how possible they can set up the first ever National Fund for Skills Development (NFSD) in Rwanda.

The initiative aims at establishing and sustaining a financing model for skills development and ensuring high skilled labour force in the country. It will also help to tackle Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) funding challenges through holistic resource mobilization and efficient funding allocation.

The European Union is in charge of technical and financial support of the initiative with the joint local interventions to bring the fund to life.

Speaking during the launch of the initiative on Monday, November 21,2022, Michela Tomasella, Head of Cooperation of the European Union in Rwanda said that the beginning of the initiative is very promising towards achieving the country’s social economic transformation and the vision 2050.

**Michela Tomasella, Head of Cooperation of the European Union in Rwanda highlighting the benefits of the National TVET Fund during the study launch**

“It is a great honor for the European Union to launch the assignment to develop the We believe that the National TVET Fund for skills development for TVET in Rwanda, this is the beginning of the process of the National TVET Fund, the launch of the assignment comes at the right moment as skills development has different key pillars in Rwanda towards economic transformation and vision 2050,” Tomasella said

“We believe that the National TVET Fund will be a game to enjoy for skill development, and will be for growth circulation of this country, it will play significant to improve continuous learning opportunity for skill adaptation to the emerging technologies,” She added.

As per the National Strategy for Transformation (NST1), the proportion of students pursuing TVET will increase from 31.1% in (2017) to 60% by 2024 to address the challenge of mismatch in labor market demand.

Establishing a financing model

Claudette Irere, the Minister of State in charge of ICT and TVET in the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC), said that there is still a huge gap in financing TVET sector that hampers the delivery of needed quality.

**Claudette Irere, the Minister of State in charge of ICT and TVET in the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC) speaking during the event.**

“To find out sustainable solution, the ministry is reaching out stakeholders including development partners, private sector, Non-Governmental Organizations to put in place appropriate and sustainable TVET financing model. The model will impact TVET delivery, and specifically, it will address the long-lasting challenges we face in the sector, including providing modern learning equipment in line with current technologies,” Irere said.

She also noted that the financing model will look at financing enough consumable, regular practical training, establishing of TVET centers of excellence with high-quality training programs, covering the main priorities of economic sectors of the country, financing expertise for programs, supporting development of the labour market-based programs, financing pedagogical training for trainers who lack technical skills and financing students to be able to attend the schools among others.