CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF TVET INSTITUTIONS IN KENYA

TVET@100 national celebrations culminated in a three day conference at the Kabete National Polytechnic, Nairobi County between Monday July 29 and Wednesday July 31, 2024.

President William Ruto who graced the last day of the festivities termed technical training colleges as the master key to the door of opportunities for young people in Kenya. ” We are providing the necessary support to TVET institutions to power our industrialization, technology and innovation, thereby enhancing our global competitiveness. The government is determined to ensure that Kenya is not left behind and that our young people remain at the forefront of global industrial and technological progress. Our education system has never been more essential and TVET, in particular, is now a focal sector which must receive our full attention. We cannot afford to get it wrong.” Said President Ruto.

The national celebrations were launched on Tuesday March 26, 2024 and the TVET@100 torch has traversed all 47 counties. Currently the TVET system includes 320 public TVET colleges, 24 of which are national polytechnics, while 4 cater to special needs. Additionally, there are 1,100 vocational training centres (TVCs) in the counties, and the government is developing 16 new TVCs to fulfil the national policy of having one in each constituency. The government has committed KSh28.3 billion for allocation to TVET institutions and recruited 2,000 TVET tutors increasing the trained faculty to 3,300.

According to the President Ruto the government is implementing important reforms and developments to enhance the TVET system. These are;
a. Reinstatement of the technical and vocational education and training curriculum development
assessment and certification council, TVET CDACC.

b. Approval of the recognition of prior learning policy.

c. Upgrading of 13 technical training institutes and colleges to national polytechnics.

d. The elevation of the Morendat Institute of Oil and Gas into a national polytechnic.

e. The implementation of the recommendations in the report of the Presidential Working Party on Education
Sector Reforms.
f. Implementation of the National TVET Blueprint (2020-2030) by the Ministry of Education.

g. The development and implementation of a Dual Training Policy which involves industry players in the
training process.

h. Participation in the East African Skills for Transformation and Regional Integration Project, EASTRIP, with Ethiopia and Tanzania. The project has so far harmonized 44 occupational standards and identified 235 existing TVET qualifications for mutual regional
recognition to facilitate the mobility of learners and professionals in the region.

i. Disbursing KSh1.95 billion to benefit 52,542 TVET trainees as government scholarships and KSh6.15 billion as HELB loans to 167,000 trainees.

j. Equipping 70 TVETs with state-of-the-art facilities to provide trainees with world-class exposure in the course of their learning.

k. Establishing 213 Jitume Centres in various parts of the country, complete with 370 trained tutors to support
young people in preparing for and accessing digital jobs.