ACET economist Habtamu Tesfaye Edjigu discusses the integration of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) into mainstream education across six African nations. The discussion highlights key reforms, challenges, and opportunities pertaining to youth employment.
Few questions loom larger over Africa’s economic future than how to equip its young people with the skills to thrive. As millions leave school and enter labor markets ill-prepared for productive work, the pressure is mounting to reform education systems, starting with how vocational skills are delivered.
At the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET), economist Habtamu Tesfaye Edjigu has dedicated significant time to studying how six African countries—Cote D’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Niger, Rwanda, and Uganda—are rethinking the role of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET). His recent report explores whether integrating TVET into the broader education system can shift the focus from merely sorting students to genuinely supporting their development.
In this conversation, he talks about ambitious reforms from across the continent, the trade-offs policymakers face, and the lengthy journey from strategy to execution. He also considers what it means to be a researcher working in and for Africa, emphasizing that vocational reform involves more than just skills; it’s about systems.
Q: What made you want to explore the idea of integrating TVET into general education? Why is this conversation so important now?
A: Africa’s demographic dividend is at risk of slipping away. Each year, 10–12 million young Africans enter the labor force, but only about 3 million formal jobs are created. Most secondary graduates will never go to university, and if TVET sits outside the mainstream system, we leave a majority without employable skills, effectively baking structural underemployment into the growth model. By integrating TVET earlier with credible certification, flexible paths, and real work exposure, we can shift from merely sorting students to developing skills that match digitalization, green jobs, and global supply chains.
Q: Ethiopia’s model is ambitious, embedding vocational training into secondary school curricula. What stood out to you?
A: Their ambition and design. Ethiopia starts TVET from grade 7, with a Level 1 certificate by grade 12. Their eight-level national qualifications framework and the 70/30 model, which focuses 70 percent on practical skills and 30 percent on theory, really show that vocational training isn’t just a fallback but a key part of education. They have over 1,300 institutions, which is quite impressive. But, of course, ambition doesn’t always match results. They’re facing several challenges, like fluctuating enrollment, uneven quality, especially outside major cities, and a shortage of qualified teachers. It’s clear that having a good strategy has to be matched with fiscal and institutional capacity.
Q: You also looked at Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Ghana, Rwanda, and Uganda. What were some common threads across those countries?
A: I have noticed a few recurring patterns. One is underfunding—TVET programs often receive less than 2% of education budgets, which means outdated equipment and underpaid teachers. Then there’s the issue with weak labor market information systems that often rely on old surveys instead of using predictive tools to plan skills needs. Fragmented governance can also be observed, from reliance on ad hoc donor platforms and slow reforms to overlapping responsibilities among governing bodies. There’s also a digital readiness gap—many countries lack connectivity, devices, and effective teaching methods, though Rwanda stands out as an exception. Lastly, gender disparities continue to be a significant concern. Women are underrepresented in STEM fields and higher-paying trades, despite increasing enrollment numbers.
Q: Everyone says implementation is the hardest part. What’s holding it back?
A: There are four major choke points: finance, human capital, institutions, and perceptions and access.
Low, volatile funding undermines labs, digital infrastructure, and modern curricula. There are too few qualified instructors, limited professional development opportunities, and a weak industry attachment. Fragmented governance, unclear mandates, and weak labor market information systems all contribute to weakening the effectiveness of institutions. And TVET needs a rebrand. The stigma associated with it, the lack of gender-sensitive infrastructure, and barriers for rural youth and learners with disabilities amount to, in economic terms, coordination failures. When fiscal, labor, and institutional levers don’t move together, reforms stall.
Q: When people read this report, what’s one thing you hope sticks with them?
A: That TVET reform is not a marginal education issue — it’s central to Africa’s growth model. Without modern, inclusive, and market-aligned TVET systems, the demographic dividend risks turning into a demographic liability.
Q: Zooming out, what does your work at ACET look like more broadly?
A: ACET’s goal is to connect research to policy. My team, Youth Employment and Skills, works together with our partners to generate evidence on jobs, skills, and industrial transformation. My role involves coordinating work, supervising country partners, and preparing synthesis reports that consolidate cross-country insights for policymakers.
Q: How are policymakers engaging with research these days?
A: During the study, we saw strong interest from policymakers, not only in providing inputs but also in seeing the results. They want evidence that is timely, practical, and directly linked to their policy priorities. The most effective engagement occurs when research is co-created with them, so the findings naturally inform decisions rather than sitting on a shelf.
Q: What surprised you during this study?
A: A few things stood out to me. First, despite the sheer number of TVET institutions, funding remains very limited, often less than 2 percent of education budgets. Second, although many governments are offering incentives for electric cars and other green technologies, most TVET systems have not yet incorporated green skills training, leaving massive gaps between policy ambition and actual training. And third, the absence of regular skills surveys or fully functional labor market information systems means that countries often plan reforms without real-time data on demand.
Q: What’s the next frontier for TVET reform?
A: Five priorities stand out for me from this study. We need to finance what matters, which includes raising TVET funding to 10–20 percent of education budgets. This can be achieved by diversifying financing through training levies, PPPs, and equity-focused scholarships. We must teach for the future, embedding digital and green skills across all programs to prepare learners for technology-driven and sustainable economies. Thirdly, it is imperative that we include everyone, remove barriers for women, rural youth, and learners with disabilities through targeted scholarships, safe housing, accessible facilities, and inclusive pedagogy. We also need to follow the data, build robust labor market information systems (LMIS), institutionalize tracer studies, and use real-time data to update curricula and funding priorities. Finally, we need to value informal skills by recognizing apprenticeships and informal learning through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and creating flexible pathways to certification.
A little more about you
Q: One policy idea you wish more people paid attention to?
A: Performance-linked financing for TVET. Linking part of funding to employability and equity outcomes creates accountability and attracts private co-investment.
Q: Hands-on or theory-driven learner?
A: Both. Theory gave me the scaffold; practice revealed the constraints. That mix is exactly what TVET systems need.
Q: How do you unwind after long research stretches?
A: Long walks and strong coffee.
Q: What’s something your ACET colleagues might not know about you?
A: I probably drink far too much coffee.
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The report will be launched tomorrow. You can sign up for the launch event here: https://acetforafrica.org/event/rethinking-tvet-for-africas-economic-transformation-a-policy-roundtable-and-intergenerational-dialogue/.