Experts' meeting on TVET and skills development in Afghanistan

Bonn, Germany, 12-16 March 2012

From 12-16 March 2012, an Experts' Meeting on Fostering Capacity Building in TVET and Skills Development in Afghanistan was held at UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre in Bonn, Germany.

The Centre was honored to welcome the Deputy Minister of Education, Mr Mohammad Asif Nang, and Mr Zekrullah Taibi, Policy and Programs Development Director at the Ministry of Education in Afghanistan at its premises for the 4-day meeting. The meeting was furthermore attended by TVET experts from Afghanistan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Germany, including from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Mannheim and the Federal Ministry of Economic Co-operation and Development (BMZ).

Co-organized by UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre and UNESCO Kabul Office in partnership with the UNESCO TVET Section, the meeting aimed to:

discuss concerns, issues and prospects in the field of TVET from a global perspective;
share experience and challenges in TVET and skills development from an Afghan’s perspective;
provide inputs to the designing of Afghanistan National Technical and Vocational Research Center (ANTVRC) and its establishment;
foster capacity building with regard to the development and successful implementation of a National TVET Strategy (NTVETS) in Afghanistan;
provide peer learning and study visit opportunities for knowledge-sharing among the development partners and stakeholders in TVET.

Opening speeches were presented by Mr. Shyamal Majumdar, Head of UNESCO-UNEVOC, Mr Mohammad Asif Nang, Deputy Minister of Education in Afghanistan, and Anke Doerner, German Commission for UNESCO

. Various presentations were given and intensive discussions were held. The meeting also included study tours to the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB)

, the German Water Association (DWA)

in Bonn and the UNEVOC Centre in Magdeburg.

The meeting provided an excellent platform to reflect on the significance of global challenges in TVET and share experiences and practical examples in order to support the national set-up of the ANTVRC.

Overall, the meeting offered an extensive opportunity for both the organizers and the Afghan delegates to discuss opportunities and challenges with regards to the successful development and implementation of a responsive national strategy on TVET. The meeting laid the basis for determining priority actions and further development of a long-term proactive implementation mechanism for TVET Development in Afghanistan.