ILO Country Office Director and EU Ambassador to Zambia confers on areas of partnerships

The four-year programme, which was launched in 2023, strengthens the relevance, quality and governance of the Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training (TEVET) system, and encourages greater participation of the private sector in skills development initiatives that respond to the needs of industry, in a greener economy.

The project is also working to support the government and private actors to focus on the governance and management structures of Zambia’s TEVET system and to support the upgrading and maintenance of training facilities and curriculum development.

Ambassador Stasiak expressed gratitude for ILO’s partnership with EU in skills development among young people and narrowing the skills gaps on the labour market.

“We count a lot on SDEP because a good TEVET system is key to economic development of Zambia. We have skills mismatch between what is coming from the training institutions and the industry,” she said.

Ambassador Stasiak added that it was encouraging that the project would revise the curriculum of TEVET institutions in energy, mining, tourism and agriculture to reflect the needs of the industry.

In response, Mr Chibebe said ILO would continue to partner with EU in addressing the huge skills mismatch in the country.

“SDEP is going to be key for the development prospects of Zambia. It will be important in raising the low productivity levels of the country because of lack of relevant skills to support the industry. There is a huge skills gap between what is produced in TEVET institutions and the needs of the market,” he said.

Mr Chibebe has since called for private sector involvement in revising TEVET curricula and for the promotion of Work-Based Learning interventions to contribute towards improving employability of the labour force.