TVET EDUCATION CLOSING SKILLS MISMATCH GAP

On World Skills Day

We explore how TVET education is helping to close the skills mismatch and prepare youth for a changing job market.

Why skills mismatch, unemployability is a real challenge;

A 2021 Uganda Investment Authority survey found that

Only around 13%, or approximately 90,000, of the 700,000 graduates who enter the workforce each year are able to find official employment, according to the Mastercard Foundation. Although the national youth unemployment rate is 12.3%, the situation for individuals between the ages of 15 and 24 is far worse, since 42.6% of them are categorized as NEETs (not in employment, education, or training). According to a 2021 Uganda Investment Authority poll, 68% of industrial businesses have trouble finding workers with the necessary technical capabilities, and 30% of graduates have jobs that do not match their qualifications. These findings further highlight the widening skills and opportunity divide. These figures demonstrate the urgent disconnect between the demands of the job market and the educational system, highlighting the necessity of TVET and other responsive, skills-based training.

The NEET dilemma is a ticking time bomb; let's examine why. Long-term disengagement from education or employment causes young people's skills to deteriorate rather than simply stagnate. A vicious circle of missed opportunities, underqualification, and prolonged unemployment ensues. Many become desperate due to a lack of options, making them prime targets for extremism, exploitation, or criminal activity. This isn't simply a youth bulge in Africa, where almost 70% of the population is under 30. It's a delicate, unstable demographic that runs the risk of becoming a burden rather than the economic engine it ought to be.

Looking at the staggering stats, it's important that we all put effort in supporting available intervetion to close skills mismatch one of the major ones being TVETs.

Unlike traditional academic pathways that focus heavily on theory, TVET offers practical, job-ready skills in trades such as:

• Tailoring & Fashion Design – for school uniforms, garment repair, and local fashion enterprises.
• Shoemaking & Leatherwork – serving urban and rural needs for repairs and custom footwear.
• Welding & Metal Fabrication – essential in construction, furniture, and water tank production.
• Carpentry & Joinery – vital for housing and school infrastructure.
• Motor Vehicle Mechanics – addressing transport and vehicle maintenance needs.

The Significance of These Competencies in Local Economies Centered Employment Graduates can start businesses or participate in local workshops, which will increase the number of jobs created in rural areas without having to relocate to the city. Reasonably Priced Solutions TVET-trained local artisans offer affordable services to small enterprises, clinics, schools, and households. Entrepreneurship Facilitator A large number of TVET graduates work for themselves, creating jobs for others as well. Three people can be trained or hired by a single tailoring graduate. Relevance and Resilience These jobs are difficult to automate or outsource. Builders, fixers, manufacturers, and service providers will always be needed in communities.

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Strides and progress

The government has strengthened and built capacity of TVETs to manage skilling gaps in Uganda. Institutionalization of the TVET Council, restructuring UBTEB into UVTAB is a step in the right direction. The role of civil societies and NGOs. Mastercard foundation with an impactful reach of training 3.8M, enabling 1.3M placements via Young Africa Works. Presidential Skilling hubs in differnet regions targeting vulverable young people from poor communities is working to reduced the NEET rate

We must prioritize and invest in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in order to unleash the full potential of Africa's young and close the growing gap between education and employment. TVET is a crucial component of creating inclusive, resilient, and opportunity-rich economies; it is not a substitute. From welding and tailoring to solar installation and ICT repair, it gives young people transferable, real-world skills that directly address local and national labor demands.

The commercial sector, governments, and development partners must make a commitment to professionalizing TVET training, upgrading curricula, enhancing infrastructure, and increasing access. This entails more financing, more robust public-private partnerships, and laws that improve the standing of TVET institutions and graduates.

Scaling and reforming TVET is a socio-economic revolution as well as an educational reform. Millions of people's jobs, dignity, and future.

Although they constitute the foundation of TVET training, technical skills alone are insufficient. Graduates' abilities need to be strengthened with soft skills like communication, problem-solving, teamwork, and adaptability if they are to succeed in the fast-paced job market of today. A solid foundation in entrepreneurship and work readiness qualities, such as professionalism, ethics, and punctuality, are equally important. Entrepreneurial thinking enables graduates to establish their own chances, establish sustainable lives, and become job creators rather than job seekers in many regions where conventional jobs are scarce. Young people are prepared not just to survive but also to thrive and lead in the real world through a comprehensive strategy that combines technical know-how with these human-centered abilities.