Perspectives on Vocational Education in Africa

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to provide a landscape view of the values and justifications of different types of vocational education, specifically in Africa. At first, the paper will review the justifications of vocational education. African governments often state that vocational education is the most efficient means to meet the manpower demand in the labor market. However, this justification is rarely supported by empirical data. The paper reveals that there are other reasons that governments do not give up this form of education. Three different types of vocational education are here examined: Separate-track vocational education; vocationalized general education; and non-formal vocational education. Based on the review of the opinions of people who promote or criticize each types of vocational education, the paper will show the strengths and weaknesses of each type. This analysis will serve to better understand and consider the vocational education in Africa. Vocational training/education in industrial technology has been the largest part of the JICA's (Japanese International Cooperation Agency) cooperation in the field of education (see Figure 1). So far, JICA's programs in this category have been infrastructure building, technical assistance, and trainin of teachers/trainers and administrators for the establishment of independent vocational education/training institutions at the secondary and higher levels of formal and non-formal education. The types of vocational skills taught in these JICA-funded institutions have been diverse: fisheries, farming, electronics, automobile repair, information technology, architecture, etc. The types of skills taught have been decided basically according to the request of the respective government. Although JICA also conducts a needs assessment before implementation, it mostly assumes that the request from the government is based on the forecast of manpower needs on the side of the government. Given the fact that one third of JICA's fund for education has been spent for vocational education (34.1 percent in FY 1998), it is important to review whether or not the funding policy in this area meets the general economic and labor market conditions of the countries' JICA support and to consider the future policy so as to maximize the utility of the funds JICA provides. The purpose of this paper is to overview the recent debates about vocational education in developing countries as a basis for considering what direction the development assistance in the area of vocational education might head. Arguments in support or critical of different forms of vocational education at the secondary level will be examined. In the formal education sector, many people believe that secondary schools are the most