Technical and Vocational Education and Training institutions (TVET) have been urged to forge gainful partnerships with industry players.

Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Education State Department for TVET Dr Esther Muoria said the partnerships will help identify market gaps that TVET institutions should fill through competent training to meet the market demand.

She was speaking during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Kenya Coast National Polytechnic and Isuzu East Africa in Mombasa on Wednesday.

According to the PS the government priorities have shifted from just educating and training to giving skills to the youth.

Industry players

She appealed to the industry players to help TVET institutions in identifying the niche areas where we need to tailor our focus in skill development. “I do not think that it is important anymore for one to have a Diploma in Automotive Engineering. That is too wide and I am very uncomfortable with that. This is why we are asking the industry players like Isuzu because you are the People with the vehicle, to help us identify the niche areas. In which area can I train and be very good in,” Muoria stated.

Isuzu East African Managing Director Rita Kavashe disclosed that due to changing technology the company is usually forced to train students who join the job market for two years. “We want to reduce the number of years. That is possible through such a kind of partnership and we are going to make sure that we are going to collaborate, provide internships and even job opportunities,” Rita said.

Every year, she said millions of students globally join the job market with an unclear path to follow.