Mudavadi to TVETs: Build skilled, adaptable and innovative workforce

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has urged Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) to enhance their capability and relevance in responding to manpower needs.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has said TVETS must build a skilled, adaptable, and innovative workforce meeting the demands of industries and the job market.

Mudavadi said the government is in the process of undertaking progressive reforms in realising the productivity of TVETs.

"As part of the reforms, the Cabinet approved the dual training policy, which formalises integration of theoretical learning and hands-on training in industries," he said.

"This historic decision is a game changer since it will ensure trainees who have been constrained by skills mismatch with the needs of our industries, can now graduate with cutting edge skills for entrepreneurship or local and international labor markets," he added.

He further said policies and programmes are being rolled out to grow and develop the TVET sector, to produce skills that will support Kenya’s priority sectors and enhance its global competitiveness.

Mudavadi was speaking when he presided over the 1st graduation ceremony for Kaiboi National Polytechnic in Nandi on Monday.

He said the reforms focus on enhancing the quality of education and training, improving access to TVET programmes, and ensuring that what is taught in these institutions directly addresses the needs of the labour market.

Mudavadi said the government has also set up a policy framework that will enable the TVET institutions to fully implement the robust Competency-Based Education and Training (CBET) curriculum that was rolled out in September 2023.

The training focuses on practical skills and outcomes that ensure TVET trainees are knowledgeable and highly skilled in the areas most needed by industries.

“The Government has further made substantial investments in upgrading TVET institutions’ infrastructure, including providing modern equipment and learning tools. It has also enhanced investments in the training and development of TVET instructors, particularly in new technologies and methodologies,” said Mudavadi.

“We have recently recruited 2,000 trainers to bridge the trainer deficit in the TVET sector, while enhancement of the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) framework has formalised the competencies of artisans who have gained skills through work experience or informal learning,” he added.

The first graduation ceremony of Kaiboi National Polytechnic since it was upgraded from a technical training institute last year saw the first 1,614 graduands celebrate with various accomplishments in artisan, craft, and diploma categories.