Quality vocational skills development that enables trainees to gain a foothold in the labour market and to find and keep jobs with decent working conditions can contribute to poverty reduction. The goal is economic development that benefits all. The SDC works with the public authorities and the private sector to develop training programmes tailored to the needs of the market.

Focus of the SDC's activities

The SDC supports a vocational skills development approach that can provide trainees with the skills they need to take part in the labour market and which gives them access to reasonably paid work. The idea is to enable them to acquire the professional skills to take part in the formal or informal labour market either as employees or self-employed workers.

The SDC wants to ensure that young trainees, once trained, can go on to find employment and contribute to productivity growth. The aim is to increase training opportunities and to ensure that all sections of the population – the poor and not so poor, women and men, and urban and rural residents – can benefit from them.

In order to ensure that training programmes are optimally tailored to the needs of trainees and the economy, the SDC makes every effort to involve both the public authorities and the private sector in the planning and implementation stages. The most promising training programmes comprise theoretical and practical instruction – like Switzerland’s dual vocational education and training system.

The SDC is working to improve vocational skills development opportunities, but also encourages the recognition of informal work experience and learning, including self-taught skills, which many professionals can bring to the table.

Depending on the circumstances and contexts, the SDC recommends including introductory modules for certain trades in compulsory school curricula. Career counselling services have proved useful in secondary schools. Ideally, vocational skills development should provide a bridge between basic education and the world of work. With this in mind, the SDC complements vocational skills development programmes with activities to strengthen the private sector and create jobs.

Background

In 2017, some 71 million young people of working age are unemployed. Nearly twice this number are living in poverty, often because they lack education and training and cannot find a decent job. Only 11% of young people in secondary education around the world are enrolled in vocational programmes.

There is a clear need to increase training opportunities to enable young people to prove their potential on the labour market. Vocational skills development, like basic education, is a fundamental condition for economic and social development. It is critically important for vocational skills development to build on high-quality basic education and, if necessary, to close existing knowledge gaps.

Quality vocational skills development only makes sense, however, if those who graduate from vocational skills development programmes find employment opportunities. According to the World Bank, 40 million new jobs are expected to be created annually to absorb the growing number of young people entering the labour market, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Providing a skilled workforce can boost business productivity and competitiveness, which has a positive effect on economic growth and job creation. Offering prospects to the vulnerable and meeting the aspirations of young people is essential to avoid wasting human and economic potential.

Testimonials from beneficiaries

People who have benefited from vocational training talk about their experiences.

Gender and skills development

The SDC integrates respect for gender equality in its projects and ensures that women have access to the job market.

Current Projects

Object 85 – 96 of 120

Project completed

Modernising vocational education and training related to agriculture in Georgia

The image shows the VET college student Medea getting hands-on instructions in the Senaki College greenhouse on growing vegetables.

01.01.2013 - 31.12.2018

Georgia’s vocational education and training (VET) system does not correspond to the needs of the transition to a market economy which the government has sought to bring about since the country gained its independence. The SDC is helping the Georgian government to develop a more modern VET system that integrates theory and practice and allows a long-term increase in farm productivity and rural incomes.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Georgia
Agriculture & food security
Vocational training
Employment & economic development
Education
Agricultural development
Agricultural services & market
Vocational training
Agriculture value-chain development (til 2016)
SME development

01.01.2013 - 31.12.2018


CHF 6'547'000



Project completed

Vocational Education and Training Laos (VELA)

01.01.2013 - 30.06.2019

The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supports a reform of technical and vocational education and training in Lao PDR to ensure that Lao youth—particularly from marginalized groups—have access to quality education, can obtain a high level of skills, and can find and keep well-paid jobs.


Project completed

Professional education and training to enhance employability of young people in Nicaragua

01.01.2013 - 30.06.2017

Nicaragua’s need for significant improvements at all levels of education is widely recognized. The recent Vocational Education and Training (VET) system reform and SDC’s good results in the cooperation with the National Technological Institute (INATEC) provide a good base for a new project phase. The overall goal of the project is to reduce poverty and vulnerability among youth. The employability and inclusion of young men and women from rural areas and marginal urban settings into the labour market will be enhanced.


Project completed

Support Nigerian Diaspora – Vocational training initiative

01.12.2012 - 31.05.2016

The Global Programme Migration and Development of SDC supports NIDOE-Swiss in strengthening its skills and expertise and thereby enables it to implement development projects in Nigeria. NIDOE-Swiss will implement a project funded by SDC to improve the vocational training of students and their employability in Nigeria. The organisation's knowledge and skills will contribute to the economic development in Nigeria.


Project completed

Support to UNRWA institutional and operational reforms (Education)

15.11.2012 - 15.03.2013

SDC support to UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for the Palestine Refugees in the Near East) in the occupied Palestinian territory will enable the organization to further implement its mandate and its reforms agenda. The intervention focuses on the delivery of enhanced education services - which include primary education, skills development and professional training services – for the benefit of over 270,000 pupils attending UNRWA’s schools and technical vocational education and training centers.


Project completed

Education and vocational training for Roma children

Roma young girls participating in games at summer camps organised by Swiss-supported project.

01.11.2012 - 31.10.2016

Albania's social safety net has to be strengthened to address the conditions faced by marginalised groups, in particular the Roma. The project integrates Roma children into the education system, provides tools and skills to local social care services, and documents best cases of social inclusion for futher replication. 

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Albania
Governance
Other
Human rights
Education
Decentralisation
Sector not specified
Human rights (incl. Women's rights)
Primary education

01.11.2012 - 31.10.2016


CHF 2'250'000



Project completed

ProCAP - Vocational Skills Development Program

01.11.2012 - 31.12.2015

Vocational skills development is key to poverty reduction in Bolivia. Since 2006, Switzerland is working in this area with important effects in training quality and amplification of coverage in rural areas. This credit is proposed to further broaden coverage (reaching marginal urban populations of 4’200 men and women) and foster sustainability by strengthening training for technical instructors (650 trained teachers with quality).


Project completed

Vocational education and training in Tunisia – Objective: employment

Four young employees at a "practice firm" standing with their work certificates

15.07.2012 - 31.12.2015

Youth unemployment – a major factor in the revolutions that shook the countries of North Africa in 2011 – is a consequence of poor employability in the labour market. An SDC project aims to enhance vocational education and training in Tunisia. In particular, young university graduates are being given the opportunity to acquire practical skills by undertaking internships in "practice firms". Because they have proven so successful, Switzerland’s activities have been extended until 2020.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Tunisia
Employment & economic development
Vocational training
Education
Employment creation
Vocational training
SME development

15.07.2012 - 31.12.2015


CHF 3'150'000



Project completed

Evaluating one's own competences and getting to know the world of employment in Romania

A young man demonstrates the hairdressing trade at a careers guidance event.

01.07.2012 - 30.06.2019

The project called "Job Orientation Training in Businesses and Schools (JOBS)" combines two systems: the school system with that of the job market. The programme prepares students in their final year at the classical upper secondary school and those in their first year at vo-tech middle schools to be better able to evaluate their own competences and become acquainted with the real working world. The objective is for the students to thus obtain information on the job opportunities open to them and increase their chances of embarking on the course of professional training that is best suited for them.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Romania
Unallocated / Unspecified
Sectors not specified
Promoting economic growth and improving working conditions
VocationalTraining
Regional development and employment

01.07.2012 - 30.06.2019


CHF 2'116'280



Project completed

Improving the chance of finding employment thanks to better professional qualifications

A mechanical carpentry centre in Fada N'Gourma, Burkina Faso.

01.07.2012 - 31.08.2017

Although vocational training is the gateway to the world of work and plays a key role in efforts to reduce poverty, access remains difficult for much of the population in many countries. In Burkina Faso, the SDC supports a programme of vocational training in the areas of crafts, agriculture, animal husbandry and forestry. The approach is one of dual apprenticeship based on the Swiss model.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Burkina Faso
Vocational training
Employment & economic development
Education
Vocational training
Employment creation
Tradepolicy & market system
SME development

01.07.2012 - 31.08.2017


CHF 5'000'000



Project completed
Project completed

Improved living conditions for Roma in Slovakia

Two girls holding hands.

01.05.2012 - 30.06.2017

Integrating the Roma people into society presents a major challenge both to Slovakia and for the whole region. Currently, the Roma in Slovakia, who make up around 8.5% of the population in the eastern provinces of Kosice and Presov, are disadvantaged in comparison with the majority of the population. Typically, they live in badly constructed, dilapidated housing and rarely have access to education or healthcare services. The poor living conditions lead to long-term unemployment and high levels of poverty. An SDC project being conducted within the framework of the enlargement contribution is designed to improve their living standard.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Slovakia
Unallocated / Unspecified
Sectors not specified
Improving social security
Social services for specific target groups

01.05.2012 - 30.06.2017


CHF 1'410'000


Object 85 – 96 of 120