Overview of Technical and Vocational Education in Nepal

The skills and knowledge of a population, strengthen a country’s economy and development. Least developed nations like Nepal need to focus on developing the skills of its population to create a resilient and growing economy. Skill development is critical and should be prioritized in Nepal as the country has a growing number of youth population who have received formal education but lack the practical skills necessary for the job market. The Government of Nepal envisions achieving rapid, sustainable, and employment-oriented economic growth as per its 15^th Five-Year Plan. Similarly, it has targeted to provide high quality, employment – oriented and practical education to all its citizens. One of the main levers of sustainable development is education, which involves the transfer, acquisition, creation, and adaptation of information, knowledge, skills, and values. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have also been incorporated into Nepal’s national development framework, which includes quality education, decent work and economic growth. The SDGs call for access to high-quality training and reasonably priced technical, vocational, and tertiary education, including university education. By 2030, the SDGs envision more young people and adults to have the necessary skills, including technical and vocational ones, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship.

Nepal’s Youth Lack the Skills for Employment

The current status of skills and employment levels in Nepal is far from satisfactory. According to UNICEF’s Voices of Youth: South Asian Perspectives on Education, Skills and Employment survey, which included 33,000 young people from varied backgrounds throughout South Asia, including Nepal – 54% of South Asia’s youth will not have the necessary skills for employment by 2030. According to a recent report released by UNICEF, young people aged 15 to 24 in about 92 countries including Nepal are off-course when it comes to acquiring the skills required for employment. A mismatch of skills and jobs can be attributed to inadequate skill attainment among young people, and more so among those living in low-income nations, where the percentage of young people who are on track to acquire relevant skills is the lowest. As per the National Labour Force Survey 2017/18, 47% of Nepal’s working age population is in the 15 to the 34-year age group. However, the unemployment rate amongst the 15 to 24-years and 25 to 34-years age groups is 21.4% and 12.7%, respectively.

The discrepancies in skills and jobs in Nepal do not imply that the country lacks appropriate institutions that offer skills and knowledge that can educate the young population. While many young people do not usually opt for these technical schools, those who do attend have not been able to keep up with demand in the market. Every fiscal year, the Government of Nepal sets aside budget and programs to promote such technical and vocational education. For the current fiscal year, out of the NPR 198.6 billion budget for the education sector the government has allocated NPR 8.3 billion for vocational and technical education. It also plans to promote the “Education with Skill Program” to promote employment and production through skilled and educated labour.

The Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) was founded as the apex institution to promote the growth of Nepal’s Technical Education and Vocational Training (TVET) sector. The CTEVT aims to generate all levels of technical human resources in accordance with labour market demands by coordinating with and among various TVET-providing agencies in the nation and certify the skills acquired by workers informally/unofficially. Since its inception, CTEVT has been offered 140 1696-hour short-term vocational training programs, including 24-months apprenticeship programs, 18-months pre-diploma programs, and three-year diploma programs. There are currently a total of 1106 institutes across Nepal runs CTEVT courses, including 63 component institutions, 429 associated private institutes, 572 community schools offering TECS programs, and 42 partnering institutes. Likewise, CTEVT currently offers 260 short-term training curriculum, 49 diploma-level curricula, 33 pre-diploma level curricula (including apprenticeship), and 9 curricula for professional courses in fields ranging from engineering, agriculture, health, hospitality, and others.

Challenges in Vocational and Technical skilling up

While the CTEVT offers an incredibly wide range of TVET programs, the enrollment in these programs is much lower than expected. The data from CTEVT show that the intake in the pre-diploma and diploma courses is decreasing as compared to the enrollment capacity. While the demand for technical human resources in the market exists, the trainees are less interested to pursue enrollment in the pre-diploma and diploma courses that might give them the skills required for the jobs.

Figure 1: Enrollment capacity and actual enrollment of CTEVT courses (FY2020/21)

Source: CTEVT Annual Report 2021

Another concern that Nepal experiences are the problem of the TEVT curricula either not being updated at all or not being updated in a timely manner to reflect the shifting demands of the labour market. It was discovered that the needs of the industry were not fully considered while creating a curriculum, and faculty members were not given the training that was required in new industries as specified in the curricula. Due to the gap between the supply and demand for skills, TVET programs’ quality is suffering, and as a result, the graduates suffer. Additionally, the perception of CTEVT programs in Nepali society appears to be unfavorable, as few people consider TVET to be an acceptable alternative to academic university programs. Less than 2% of higher secondary school students in Nepal are enrolled in programs for technical and vocational education.

Way Forward

It is essential that academicians and the relevant stakeholders consider the changing market needs, evolving technology, and requirements of the ongoing human resource need when developing a curriculum. A strong and well-thought-out Technical and Vocational Education and Training boosts productivity and aids in establishing employment opportunities. In order to attract young people and ensure that the courses and certifications offered by the organizations are valid and recognized by the industry, the CTEVT needs to work toward improved branding of its qualifications. While the CTEVT does work with private sector associations and federations such as the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industries, the Confederation of Nepali Industries and the Nepalese Chamber of Commerce, the association among these bodies need to be coordinated to leverage these partnerships. This would collectively help individuals and the economy to identify obvious demand and supply gaps within the labor market and bring about solutions through collaborative efforts.