submitted by Zekrullah Taibi, DTMTVET Afghanistan, on 24.11.2014

Download the full version of the Concept Note in pdf format

Summary

Although a lot has been done in making TVET accessible, the quality and standard of TVET being delivered in Afghanistan are very low and not aligned to economic growth, labor market and international and regional standards. There are concerns about the dynamism of the labor market and lack of innovation in the TVET delivery.

TVET in Afghanistan lacks the brain to think and envision. It is a functional body without a brain to guide and strategize. There is no research base TVET Education now. Our aims by establishing and promotion of research activities are to develop research base TVET Education, which has to be demand-driven and relevant. The TVET Curriculum Development is not well supported in the current traditional system therefore, the research center would be the arm to the curriculum development activities. A Labour Market Study needs to be conducted and the results of the study should be used to review the current TVET curriculum and further improvement should be based on the findings of this study. The teachers training programme and the learning materials development should also be accordingly based on these findings. An emphasis should be on the production of standard textbooks in the light of revised curriculum.

To affiliate our academic activities with the national, regional and international organizations Through the research and an innovative approach we are eager to develop IT equipped and a green TVET system .

The delivery of standard, quality and up to date TVET depends on dynamic and standard, market oriented curriculum, high quality teachers with up to date proficiency in subject areas as well as didactics and pedagogy. In addition to that there is a need of standard conducive delivery environment. However the responsibility of DM TVET does not end here. It is important to link DMTVET graduates to wealth generation, economic development and employability.

The whole system of TVET is in need of TQM and quality assurance. The need for developing quality standards in the qualification and certification is tangible and felt. There is also a need for studying and improving the procedures and regulations within the TVET.

Despite progress and initiatives in identifying and addressing capacity development needs, research capacity in Afghanistan remains quite low and there is little evidence of sustainable capacity development approaches in the TVET system. Research, monitoring and evaluation capacities and institutional framework for knowledge-sharing and information coordination across ministries and among national stakeholders still need to be developed. At operational level, the production and sharing of education resources has been so far conducted by individual training providers (NGOs), but there is high variability in the capacity of providers to do this effectively.

In this context; in 2013, the National Research Center has been approved as a new Directorate under the DMTVET. A large building in which to house the National Research Center has been planned and partially financed. The construction of the building is underway.

Further information on DMTVET, the UNEVOC Centre in Afghanistan, available here.