Minister of Technology and Science, Felix Mutati has called on cooperating partners to partner with the Government in developing demand-driven skills for economic transformation, job and wealth creation. 

Speaking during the first TEVET Cooperating Partner Knowledge and Information exchange meeting at Taj Pamodzi Hotel today, Mr. Mutati commended the donor community and implementing partners for investing in skills development to support national development, youth and women empowerment. 

He said the country benefited from skills development dividends that created financial viability in funding skills training, demand-driven skills development, investment in infrastructure and training equipment. 

"The interplay of the Skills Development Levy (SDL) from the private sector and the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) skills bursary from the public sector resulted into exponential increase in enrolments in TEVET. We opened doors to access to skills training opportunities. The SDL and CDF create financial viability and strategic investment in both current and emerging skills for national workforce competitiveness," Mr. Mutati said. 

He added that cooperating partners were investing in priority skills to consolidate the Government interventions in skilling and up-skilling the youth. “We are harvesting dividends from partnerships in many areas of TEVET today. Talk of GiZ, the EU, UNIDO, ILO, and others. They are all bringing value to the TEVET landscape.” 

Mr. Mutati said changing the legal framework to provide degrees in TEVET would make it a top tier pathway for developing practical skills to increase workforce employability. 

And TEVETA Board Chairperson, Ngoza Nkwabilo said the platform to bring cooperating partners together provided an important opportunity to reflect, learn and collectively plan for the skills needs of the country. 

Mrs. Nkwabilo said as Zambia prepared for the implementation of the Ninth National Development Plan, it was increasingly clear that achieving economic transformation required stronger coordination and deeper collaboration in education and training.  She stated that TEVET remained a key pillar to building a productive, skilled and competitive workforce to drive inclusive growth and sustainable development.

"This forum is fully aligned with the Revised Strategic Plan for TEVETA, which places strong emphasis on strengthening partnerships with key stakeholders. Our goal is to increase support to the TEVET sector and to raise its visibility as a critical economic driver for job creation, industrial productivity and wealth generation across the country," Mrs. Nkwabilo added.

She said the main pillar of the 2025–2027 Revised Strategic Plan was integration and scaling up of Competence-Based Education and Training (CBET) in TEVET. "The successful implementation of CBET calls for enhanced collaboration among Government, training institutions, industry, and our Cooperating and Implementing Partners."

Mrs. Nkwabilo said there was need to build the systems, infrastructure and institutional capacities required to ensure training outcomes were aligned with labour market needs and industry standards.

The objectives of the Cooperating Partners' meeting was to (1) share the Government of Zambia’s vision for TEVET, (2)highlight key interventions supported through the TEVET Fund aimed at expanding access to skills training and strengthening the quality and relevance of skills development across the country. It also aimed at (3)showcasing best practices, innovations and lessons and (4)present TEVET sector priorities that seek to enhance youth employability, improve industry competitiveness and increase the uptake of skills training nationwide.