By Peter Ochieng
50 youth in Kisumu County’s Kobura Ward were all smiles on Wednesday, after landing sponsorships to join various Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions.
The beneficiaries who were seemingly stranded upon completing primary and secondary school education got a lifeline, courtesy of a program being run by Billy Odhiambo, the Kobura Ward Member of the County Assembly (MCA).
“I promise to work hard to change Kobura ward,” pledged Boniface Oluoch, one of the beneficiaries.
“I thank the MCA for sponsoring us to go and chase our dreams,” added Vanessa Achieng, another beneficiary.
MCA Odhiambo on his part urged both the national and county governments to pump more resources into the TVET programs.
“We ask the government to at least pump more money in the TVET programs because you realize that there is a very large population that goes to TVET institutions. If the government pumps a lot of money, we will be able to see TVET institutions running well,” he added.
Martin Abiero from the area, called on parents to support the program, reminding them “that education is not political.”
As of 2023, data from the Technical Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA) shows that the country had 2,428 accredited TVET institutions, offering numerous courses to thousands of students.
As a comparison, there were only 753 TVET institutes in 2013, which means the need for technical training has rapidly grown over the years, with the government now putting in measures to up the game of trainers.
In September, 2023, Principal Secretary (PS) State Department for TVET Dr. Esther Thaara Muoria expressed confidence the retooling of TVET trainers conducted by the Kenya School of TVET will boost the implementation of Competency Based Education Training (CBET) in the institutions.
PS Muoria noted that 924 TVET trainers drawn from national polytechnics had been retooled, while another bunch of 580 trainers were undergoing the retooling in different regions in the country.
“For CBET delivery to be effective, trainers must be equipped with the right skills and competencies,” noted the PS.
The PS further noted that there is a huge need to ensure that TVET trainers have requisite practical skills adding that this is fundamental in the implementation of CBET.
“The State Department for TVET will soon be rolling out a robust program of up-skilling trainers on the use of training equipment,” noted the PS.