GSL Ecofin
GSL Ecofin
GSL Ecofin
New mechanisms being established under the Government strategy and funded by the
program will include a competitive, results-based Skills Development Fund open to skills
training proposals from public and private providers, to help address critical skills gaps in
these sectors; and Trainee Voucher Scheme for low income youth to remove financial
barriers to accessing training programs.
At least 30,000 youth will benefit from a new skills improvement program that will
promote the expansion as well as the quality of skills development opportunities in key
economic sectors in Tanzania.
The Education and Skills for Productive Jobs (ESPJ) Program for Results approved
yesterday by the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors’ will support the
establishment and strengthening of institutional mechanisms operationalizing
Tanzania’s new National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS 2016-2021) which seeks to
increase the supply of skills for industries with high potential for growth and job creation
in the country.
The 30,000 targeted beneficiaries of the program will include trainees enrolled in
university, technical, vocational and alternative training programs in six key economic
sectors namely tourism and hospitality; agriculture, agribusiness and agro-processing;
transport and logistics; construction; information and communications technology and
energy. Employer participation and labor market relevance of skills development form
key elements of the program.
New mechanisms being established under the Government strategy and funded by the
program will include a competitive, results-based Skills Development Fund open to skills
training proposals from public and private providers, to help address critical skills gaps in
these sectors; and Trainee Voucher Scheme for low income youth to remove financial
barriers to accessing training programs.
“The improvement of human capital by helping address the skills gap is critical for the
attainment of the country’s goal to become an industrialized economy, create income
opportunities and reduce poverty,” says Bella Bird, World Bank Country Director for
Tanzania, Malawi, Burundi and Somalia. “But also with the population of job-seeking
youths growing ever so rapidly, these actions are important for long term
development.”
It is estimated that one million young people leave the education system and enter the
Tanzanian labor market annually. With the country continuing on its current stable
economic growth trajectory, it is expected that the bulk of employment opportunities
for these youth will be generated by the Private Sector.
“The private sector is vital to addressing the challenge of unemployment,” says Cornelia
Jesse, co-Task Team Leader for the ESPJ. “That is why in the program’s design, the
private sector were involved in consultations from the beginning and they are also part
of the institutional structure of the Skills Development Fund.”
The ESPJ is being financed by US$120 million under the World Bank’s International
Development Association* (IDA) and aligns with Tanzania’s new Five Year Development
Plan (2016–2021) which centers on industrialization, and emphasizes addressing skills
gaps as a critical lever to achieving its goals.
Using this approach, the study addresses five broad areas of policy concern
regarding enterprise
do skills profiles vary across firms? Which factors shape employers’ skills
demand most:
technological change?
about the adequacy and quality of skills supply, including the soft skills that many
employers say they want? Do these skill deficits pose significant obstacles to the
operation
of firms? If so, how are these deficits distributed across firms, and do they vary
Skill Strategies: What strategies do firms rely on to address skill gaps – using
high-skill
A second enterprise skills survey is currently on-going in Zambia, which will also
support the preparation of a new
Firm Performance: How do skills and skill deficits impact firm performance?
What do
and different labor skill groups, and the effectiveness of alternative strategies to
mitigate
skill deficits?
Skills Supply: How do employers assess the supply of graduates from higher
education
and TVET institutions, how responsive are education and training providers to the
skills
demands of employers, and what policy implications follow from these insights?