Technical and Vocational

Education and Training in Kenya

Understanding the Landscape

March 2019
 Contents
ABBREVIATIONS 4
DEFINITION OF KEY CONCEPTS 5
INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXT 6
THE KNOWLEDGE LANDSCAPE 7
THE POLICY LANDSCAPE 8
OTHER SUBSIDIARY STATUTES 8
THE INSTITUTIONAL LANDSCAPE 9
KEY GOVERNANCE INSTITUTIONS 9
THE TVET TRAINING INSTITUTIONS 10
THE LANDSCAPE OF TVET CURRICULA 12
THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPETENCY-BASED CURRICULA IN TVET 12
DIFFERENTIATING CORE AND BASIC COMPETENCES 13
KEY ISSUES IN CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT 14
LANDSCAPE OF COURSES IN VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTRES 16
SUMMARY OF THE CAPABILITIES PRIORITIZED BY VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTRES 16
PREFERENCE OF TECHNICAL COURSES IN VOCATIONAL TRAINING CENTRES 16
KEY ISSUES IN CURRICULUM IMPLEMENTATION 17
Disparity in entry levels and poor infrastructure 17
Gender imbalance 17
Exam-orientation 18
CUSTOM-MADE TVET CURRICULA 18
FUNDING INTERESTS IN KENYA’S TVET 20
BILATERAL INTERESTS IN TVET 20
INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE FOUNDATIONS 21
LOCAL CSR INITIATIVES 21
NETWORKS AND KEY CONVENINGS IN TVET 22

2
Acknowledgements

In July 2017, we walked into some uknown space, and were trusted with a grand learning opportunity.

The completion of this report has witnessed the contribution of many institutions and individuals. We are
deeply indepted to the two successive Principal Secretaries in charge of TVET, Dr Dinah Mwinzi (former)
and Dr Kevit Desai (current). They welcomed us when they had little knowledge of our program, and were
so generous in helping us understand the big picture of TVET. Thank you to the very kind leaders of TVET
in Kenya that we went to for further information, Dr Kipkurui Langat, Professor Charles Ondieki, Dr Lawrence
Guantai, Dr Juma Mukhwana and Elijah Mwaniki among others.

We are grateful to all the 30 Vocational Training Centres that welcomed us, and to the County Directors of
Youth Training in Nairobi, Mombasa, Nyeri, Kericho and Narok counties. We thank all our informants from
Civil Society, especially Ndung’u Kahihu of CAP-YEI, Coreen Ngurukie of Generation and Joyce Wafula of
RTI.

Thanks to all our colleagues at Zizi Afrique for the unwavering support, for sitting together to brainstorm
about skills and competences, and helping all of us understand. Thanks to Dr Fred Wamalwa who voluntarily
supported data analysis, and to Faith Mukiria and Walter Odondi, my two assistants who worked for endless
hours, visiting places and offices and conducting online search, to ensure that we understood it all.

Dr John Mugo
Team Leader
Ujana360 Program

3
 Abbreviations
CbT - Competence-based Training
CDACC - Curriculum Development, Assessment and Certification Council
CEO - Chief Executive Officer
CS - Cabinet Secretary
KCPE - Kenya Certificate of Primary Education
KCSE - Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education
KICD - Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development
KNEC - Kenya National Examinations Council
KNQA - Kenya National Qualifications Authority
KNQFA - Kenya National Qualifications Framework Act
NAVCET - National Vocational Certificate of Education and Training
NITA - National Industrial Training Authority
PS - Principal Secretary
SSAC - Sector Skills Advisory Committee
TVET - Technical and Vocational Education and Training
TVETA - Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority
VTC - Vocational Training Centre

4
Definition of Key Concepts
Technical Education: Refers to skills training at skills training for persons already in the industry, a
Craft, Diploma and Higher Diploma. The training basic function of the Ministry of Labour. Industrial
combines theoretical and practical training, and Training is coordinated by the National Industrial
entry requirements are pegged on a minimum grade Training Authority (NITA), among other providers.
from the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education. However, there is still big overlap between Industrial
Technical education is offered in the National and Vocational Training, in that NITA’s Trade Tests
Polytechnics and the Technical Training Institutes. At still constitute the commonest curricula offered in
the Ministry level, technical education is coordinated the Vocational Training Centres. This appeal is driven
by the Directorate of Technical Training, headed by by the practical nature of this training (90% practical
a director. Administratively, Technical Education is a and 10% theoretical), and the fact that there are no
function of the central government (non-devolved). academic qualifications pegged at entry, making
it accommodative to even youth with no school
completion.

Competence-based Curriculum: Refers to a

curriculum whose outcomes are expressed in terms
of competences, rather than contents or knowledge.
The curriculum emphasizes ‘doing’ over ‘knowing’.
The concept of Competence-based Training is being
popularized with the ongoing education reforms that
commenced earnestly in 2016.
Unlike the previous TVET curricula that would offer
one certificate at the end of the course (often in 2-3
years), CbT curricula are modular, and cut the courses
Vocational Education: Is understood as skills training into smaller, certifiable chunks to allow entry-re-entry
at Artisan level and below, including the Trade Tests. at the various levels. Competence-based curricula
This education is provided in the vocational training are currently being developed by the Curriculum
centres or otherwise known as Youth or Village Development, Assessment and Certification Council
Polytechnics, as well as in numerous private colleges (CDACC), while earlier curricula were developed by
countrywide. Vocational Training is a devolved function the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development and
and is managed by the 47 county governments. At assessed by the Kenya National Examinations Council
the policy (national) level, Vocational Education is (KNEC).
coordinated by the Directorate of Vocational Training
in the Ministry of Education, headed by a Director. Occupational Standards: Refer to the competences
expected by industry, articulated in form of tasks and
Industrial Training: Refers often to skills strengthening expectations, and which drive the development of
and upgrading for the industry. Simply put, this is competence-based curricula in TVET.

5
 1. Introduction and Context
Since 2017, Porticus has been implementing the Building Youth Capabilities for Work and Life Program
(BCWL), managed by the Zizi Afrique Foundation under the label of Ujana360. The program targets the
integration of whole youth development in TVET, through systemic and social change. Ultimately, the
program aims at opening opportunity to at least 1 million youth facing extreme adversities, in that they
benefit from whole youth development to enable them access, create and retain jobs, lead fulfilling lives
and contribute to the common good of society.

During the Phase 1 of the Program (ending December 2019), five outcomes will be achieved:
1. Increased understanding of whole youth development in the context of Kenya: A total of four research
reports will be produced and shared, this report on landscape mapping, and three others sharing evidence
on the competences of youth not in employment, education or training, on youth in TVET institutions, and
on working youth;
2. Sustained advocacy for whole youth development in TVET: The program will establish and animate
a network of actors to advocate for systemic and social change in TVET. The program will also directly
inform policy decisions towards holistic training in TVET, and expansion of access for youth facing extreme
adversities;
3. TVET Curricula that embed whole youth development: The program will support government to review
curricula to expand the range of competences covered, for holistic development;
4. WYD TVET models developed: The program will collaborate with selected TVET practitioners (public
and private) to develop TVET models to demonstrate what works (and what doesn’t) in the holistic training
of youth in TVET;
5. Communications for change: The Program will launch the research findings, and use the evidence to
engage policy actors (government and trainers) and public audiences (youth and parents) for change, as
well as share the program and evidence nationally, regionally and globally.

At the onset of this program, Ujana360 sought to understand the TVET landscape in Kenya, to increase
understanding of the policies, programs and actors, and be able to engage constructively with other actors
for systemic and social change. First, literature search was conducted, locating the recently published
material on TVET in Kenya. A systematic review of the few traced pieces took place. Second, the Program
conducted a reconnaissance study in 30 Vocational Training Centres (VTCs) across the country, covering
12 of Kenya’s 47 counties. This study used a simple tool to understand aspects of enrolments, the training
areas offered, the curricula implemented and other issues salient to the understanding of TVET in Kenya.

The study also interviewed 12 key actors and thought leaders in TVET, among them the Principal Secretary
in charge of TVET in the Ministry of Education, the Director General of the TVET Authority, the CEO of the
TVET Curriculum Development, Assessment and Certfication Council (CDACC), the Director of Vocational
Training, five Directors of Training at the County level and three thought leaders from civil society.

The report therefore presents a summary of the mapping exercise, responding to seven key questions:
1. What is the status of knowledge on TVET in Kenya?
2. Which policies are governing TVET in Kenya today?
3. Which institutions, governance and training, are established to deliver TVET?
4. Which curricula are available in the landscape and which are preferred by institutions?
5. Which courses are offered by the institutions and which ones do the students prefer?
6. Which funding interests exist across Bilateral Donors, Foundations and Civil Society?
7. Which advocacy networks exist, and who are the key thought leaders in TVET?

6
2. The knowledge Landscape

Over recent years, much investment has been put to Fourth, there are hardly any studies linking the
TVET research in Kenya. Available online are a wide 21st century and soft skills debate to TVET. Fifth,
range of published and non-published materials there was no published research traced based on
that could be categorized as follows: qualitative or indepth methodology. Lastly, most
available analyses are shallow based on mere
1. Unpublished student theses or conference descriptive statistics, and hardly go beyond the
papers, mostly shallow and descriptive and surface in generating deeper insight on TVET.
focusing on the broad questions of facilities in
institutions, and general challenges facing TVET In terms of publication vehicles, Kenya Journal of
institutions [e.g. Deya, Oloko and Orwa 2017; Technical and Vocational Education and Training
Kigwilu, Changilwa & Githinji 2015; Mutua, Muriuki (KJ-TVET, ISSN 2227-5088) was established by the
& Muriithi 2014, and many others] Rift Valley Technical Training Institute in 2013. The
journal (not available online) published two editions.
2. Published academic research studies, mostly The idea was then mooted to establish the Africa
small-scale and descriptive [e.g. Anindo, Journal of Technical and Vocational Education and
Mugambi & Matula 2016; Kigwilu & Akala 2017; Training (AfriTVET), which came to be 2015. AfriTVET
and Tiony, Kitainge & Ferej 2016, among others] had the inaugural publication in 2016. So far, three
issues have published over 60 articles, and most
3. Skills-focused studies in TVET, including Kigwilu of them from Kenya. A meeting held on 17th
and Bwanali 2016. December 2018 announced the scaling up of this
journal, through movement from RVTTI to the TVET
Overall, six main gaps are notable. First, most of Authority, and forming a new editorial board in 2019
the available studies are unpublished theses or to give the journal a global outlook, and increase
reports found in University libraries. Second, the the quality of publications. This will go hand in hand
published articles are based on small-scale studies with the formation of the TVET Research Advisory
based on very small samples, and therefore not Committee, which will be meeting periodically to
generalizable to the Kenyan situation. Third, nearly receive new cutting-edge research evidence, and
all publications on Kenya’s TVET are published with drawing implications for policy and practice in TVET.
either uncategorized or very low-impact journals.

7
 3. The Policy Landscape
Policy in Technical and Vocational Education and Training is as old as the sector. However, this has always
been part of the general education policy frameworks that have existed since Kenya’s independence,
including the Education Act Cap 211 of 1968, which was revised in 1970 and in 1980.

Since 2013 however, TVET in Kenya is governed by three key statutes:

1. The Technical and Vocational Education and Training Act, or TVET Act of 2013;
2. The Industrial Training Act of 2012; and
3. The Kenya National Qualifications Framework Act of 2014.

Statute Year enacted Key statements

TVET Act 2013 - Establishes the TVET Authority (TVETA) and how this should
be governed and managed
- Establishes the Curriculum Development, Assessment and
Certification Council (CDACC) and how this should be gov-
erned and managed
- Establishes the TVET Fund and how this should be governed
and managed
Industrial Training Act 2012 - Establishes the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA)
- Creates framework for collection and management of train-
ing levies
- Establishes the national industrial training board
- Establishes framework for management of industrial training
in Kenya
Kenya National Qualifi- 2014 - Establishes the Kenya National Qualifications Authority
cations Framework Act - Establishes standards for recognizing qualifications obtained
in Kenya and outside Kenya;
- Develops a system of competence, life-long learning and
attainment of national qualifications;
- Aligns the qualifications obtained in Kenya with the global
benchmarks in order to promote national and trans-national
mobility of workers;
- Strengthens the national quality assurance systems for na-
tional qualifications; and
- Facilitates mobility and progression within education, training
and career paths.

Other subsidiary statutes

Science and Innovation Act (2013): Establishes the National Commission for Science, Technology and
Innovation (NACOSTI); the Kenya National Innovation Agency (KNIA); and the National Research Fund.

The TVET Regulations (2015): Set rules and standards for TVET institutions (e.g. makes sports, guidance
and counselling and students unions mandatory), sets standards for quality assurance, and other key
regulatory frameworks for TVET institutions.

8
4. The Institutional Landscape
The institutions managing TVET in Kenya can be divided into two categories: governance or policy
institutions, and training institutions.

4.1 Key Governance Institutions

Institution Established by Key functions Current office Reports to

holder
State Department Presidency - National coordination of Cabinet Secretary Cabinet
of TVET at the TVET of education: Prof
Ministry of - TVET legislation/policy George Magoha
Education - TVET Funding Principal Secretary
of TVET:
Dr Kevit Desai

Directorate Ministry of - Coordinating Technical Director of Technical PS-TVET

of Technical Education Training Training
Education - Reporting line for
national polytechnics Current Acting:
- Reporting line for Dr Meshak Opwora
technical training
institutes

Directorate Ministry of - Coordinating of Director of PS-TVET

of Vocational Education vocational training Vocational Training:
Education - Linking to County Alphonce Mwa
Governments on
training

Technical and TVET Act (2013) - Regulating TVET; Director General TVETA Board
Vocational (6/1) - Accrediting
Education and programmes; Dr Kipkurui Langat Chair:
Training Authority - Promoting access and Dr Ahmed Kibet
(TVETA) relevance of TVET; Ferej
- Establishing training
that meets labour
market needs,
- Inspecting, licencing,
registering and
accrediting training
institutions;
- Assuring quality and
relevance of training
- Stakeholder liaison for
improvement of TVET

TVET Curriculum TVET Act 2013 - Developing training Secretary/ CDACC Council
Development, (44/1) curricula CEO
Assessment - Making rules for Chair:
and Certification examination and Current: Prof Charles
Council (CDACC) competence Dr Lawrence Ondieki
assessment Guantai
- Issuing certificates to
candidates who meet
requirements

9
 TVET Fund TVET Act 2013 - Managing TVET funds TVET Funding TVET Funding
(47/1) and disburse to training Board CEO Board
institutions On 2nd Jan,
- Managing funds (under formation) a team was
allocated by parliament appointed to vet
- Managing donations, board members,
investments and team chaired
endowments in TVET by Hannington
Gaya

National Industrial Industrial Training - Regulating industrial Director General NITA Council
Training Authority Act (3/1) training
(NITA) - Accrediting industrial Chair:
training institutions Paul Kosgei Dr Kamau
- Developing industrial Gachigi
training curricula
- Regulating registered
trainers
- Integrating labour
market information into
skills development
- Awarding trade test
certificates
- Regulating industrial
attachment,
apprenticeship and
indentured learnership

Kenya National KNQ Act 2014 - Developing Director General KNQ Council
Qualifications (6/1) accreditation
Authority framework Dr Juma Mukwana Chair:
(KNQA) - Developing assessment Prof. Bonventure
system for national Kere
qualifications
- Maintaining database of
national qualifications
- Defining levels of
competences and
qualifications
- Facilitating horizontal
and vertical mobility
across qualifications
- Promoting international
recognition of national
qualifications

4.2 The TVET Training Institutions

This landscape mapping exercise established that TVET is offered in four categories of institutions in Kenya:
1. Technical Universities
2. National Polytechnics
3. Technical Training Institutes (colleges) and
4. Vocational Training Centres.

The institutions are specified under section 26(1) of the TVET Act (2013).

10
 Category Levels offered Entry qualifications Number of public institu-
tions
Technical Universities Levels 8, 9 and KCSE C+ 4 of them, including
(regulated under Universities 10 (Bachelors, Technical University of
Act) Masters and Kenya (Nairobi), Technical
PhD) University of Mombasa
(Mombasa), Dedan Kimathi
University of Technology
(Nyeri), Karatina University
(Nyeri)
National Polytechnics Levels 6 and 7 KCSE C plain for 11 of them. At least one in
(Diploma and Diploma, Diploma each former province
higher diploma) qualification for
Higher Diploma

Teacher Trainer Colleges Up to higher Same as National Only one, the Kenya
diploma Polytechnics, and Technical Trainers College
is actually also (KTTC)
categorized as a But the University of
national polytechnic Eldoret is also training
Technical Teachers

Technical and Vocational Levels 4 and 5 KCSE C plain for Not clear how many. They
Colleges (Technical Training (Craft and Diploma, and KCSE say around 88 or 120
Institutes) Diploma) C- for certificate or operational, government is
artisan building others to one per
constituency (290)
Vocational Training Centres Levels 1 to 3 No rigid entry They say around 1,000.
Artisan, and qualifications, but Plan to increase them to
Trade Tests) regulated by the one per Ward (around
various curricula. 1,450), but no focus from
KNEC curricula government right now
require KCPE
certificate by entry

Conclusion
Seemingly, it is the vocational training centres that have the capacity to mop up the many youth not in
education, employment or training. However, the VTCs also present the challenge of being low-profile
(devolved function), poorly funded (most using very outdated training technologies) and poorly-motivated
instructors (many on short-term contracts). It seems like the choice for the BCWL program to focus on this
level may be strategic in achieving the 1 million youth ambition. Due to the high number of these institutions,
and the low academic disposition demanded at entry, it is the vocational training centres that present the
greatest opportunity for reaching youth facing extreme adversities in Kenya.

11
 5. The Landscape of
TVET curricula
To understand the curricula, a fact-finding and reconnaissance study was conducted in 30 Vocational
Training Centres (VTCs), both public and private, in 11 counties: Nairobi, Machakos, Kitui, Mombasa, Nyeri,
Kisumu, Kericho, Turkana, Narok, Embu and Siaya. The study was conducted in October 2017. The TVET
institutions (VTCs) were implementing curricula from four main sources.

1. The most popular were the Trade Tests from the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA) (88% of
VTCs). These ranged from Grade Test 3 to Grade Test 1. The institutions preferred these because they
were practical and demanded very basic academic skills. The instruction language varied, because the
testing was practical. However, others saw these as expensive, and preferred other curricula.

2. The KICD/KNEC Curriculum (NAVCET) was the second most popular (53% of VTCs). Users found this
curriculum very comprehensive and friendly to the learners. They also liked it because it included a
strong component of life skills. The downside of it however was that it demanded academic qualifications
at end of primary (KCPE).

3. Many private institutions were implementing the City and Guilds curriculum.

4. The competency-based curricula by CDACC were mentioned as an option, but none of the 30 VTCs was
implementing these. This was despite the indication from CDACC then, that around 40 curricula had been
approved and made available for use.

•Trade tests
grades 3 to 1 •Competency-
• based curricula

NITA CDACC

CITY & KICD/

GUILDS KNEC
•TVET curriculum
•Curriculum of 2008
choice for many •NAVCET
private TVETs curriculum

5.1 The Development of Competency-based Curricula in TVET

Traditionally, TVET curricula in Kenya have been developed at mainly two institutions: the Kenya Institute of
Curriculum Development (KICD) and the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA). The TVET curriculum
council (CDACC) was established through the 2013 TVET act, with the core mandate of developing
competency-based curricula in TVET, and taking over from KICD. Latest information from the Ministry (June
2018) informed that the Ministry had a 2-year transitional plan, ensuring that CDACC curricula (competency-

12
based) are taken up by all TVET institutions by 2020. It was however unclear a) The strategies that would
drive this transition, and b) What would happen to the TVET department at the KICD. To date (March 2019),
KICD is still developing TVET curricula, and the Ministry is running two parallel curriculum insitutions for
TVET.

Different from the KICD curricula, the CDACC curricula are driven by the industry, up to funding. The Council
sets up a Sector Skills Advisory Committee (SSAC) for each curriculum area, constituted mainly from experts
and practitioners in the industry. The SSAC reviews the curricula as developed by a panel of experts, and
recommends for approval by the council. The CbT are developed through a 12-step process:

1 Training needs assessment This is done by the industry to justify the need
for a curriculum in a certain area. With the needs
assessment, formal application to develop
curriculum is made to CDACC
2 Formation of Sector Skills Advisory Upon approval of application, CDACC appoints
Committee a SSAC, of normally not more than 10 members.
The SSAC is inducted on their roles and
responsibilities by CDACC, as well as on the
process of developing a CbT curriculum
3 Conducting occupational analysis The applicant and members of the industry
conduct the occupational analysis, to ascertain
the performance criteria (competency
expectations) of the trainee
4 Verification of the Occupational Analysis The SSAC verifies the outcomes of the
chart occupational analysis, and recommends these to
CDACC
5 Conducting task analysis A team of experts interprets the recommended
occupational analysis chart into specific tasks
6 Developing the occupational standards The tasks are packaged into occupational
standards for the training area, and presented to
the SSAC
7 Evaluation of the occupational standards The SSAC convenes to evaluate the occupational
by SSAC standards as the last pre-curriculum step
8 Packaging the curricula and developing The panel of experts uses the occupational
the learning guides and assessment tools standards to develop the curriculum, and all the
curriculum materials
9 Evaluating the curricula, learning guides The SSAC convenes to evaluate the curriculum
and assessment tools and materials, and once satisfied, recommends
the curriculum for approval by the council
10 Validation of curriculum by stakeholders CDACC convenes a meeting of industry
stakeholders to validate the curriculum
11 Final revisions on curriculum and The experts and SSAC revise the curriculum
materials based on inputs from the validation meeting
12 Approval of curriculum by CDACC Council CDACC approves the curriculum and releases for
implementation

5.2 Differentiating Core and Basic Competences

The competency-based curricula are made of two sets of competences. Core competences denote the
technical areas of training as prescribed in the occupational standards. On the hand, basic competences
are the transferrable, complementary capabilities demanded by the world of work, including life skills.
While competences are sector specific and are unique to each curricula, basic competences cut across
the various skills areas. This exercise established that CDACC had drafted a framework of seven basic
competences that were supposed to be integrated (rather adapted for) in each curriculum.

13
 Basic Compe- Elements
tence
2 Demonstrate • Obtain and convey workplace information;
communication • Speak English at a basic operational level;
skills • Participate in workplace meetings and discussions;
• Complete relevant work-related documents

3 Demonstrate • Use whole numbers and money up to one hundred thousand

numeracy skills for work;
• Locate, compare and use highly familiar measurement for work;
• Use highly familiar maps and diagrams for work;
• Identify and use some common 2D shapes for work;
• Locate specific Information in highly familiar tables, graphs and
charts for work

4 Demonstrate • Identify computer software and hardware

digital literacy • Apply security measures to data, hardware, software
• Apply computer software in solving tasks
• Apply internet and email in communication at workplace

5 Demonstrate • Develop entrepreneurial culture

entrepreneurial • Identify entrepreneurial opportunities
skills • Start a small business
• Operate a small business
• Grow a small business

6 Demonstrate • Develop self-awareness and ability to deal with life challenges

employability skills • Demonstrate critical safe work habits for employees
• Demonstrate workplace teamwork
• Plan and organize work
• Maintain professional growth and development in the
workplace
• Demonstrate learning, creativity and innovativeness in the
workplace

7 Demonstrate • Control environmental hazards

environmental • Control environmental Pollution
literacy • Demonstrate sustainable resource use

8 Demonstrate • Prepare to practice safety and health at work

occupational • Comply and promote compliance of workers to organization’s
safety and health occupational safety and health instructions and requirements
practices

CDACC informed however, that this framework was developed in a hurry to cover for a gap, and no open
consultations were held to validate the competences. They welcomed civil society to give feedback
for improvement of the competences. Meanwhile, the competences are being adapted for the various
competency-based curricula.

5.3 Key Issues in Curriculum Development

The landscape mapping exercise established four key issues in TVET curriculum development.
1. Funding: CDACC has lean funding and lean staff, and also receives very lean funding from government.
The curriculum process therefore heavily depends on the goodwill and funding from TVET training
institutions and industry. A member of an organization that was funding one curriculum lamented: ‘They
make you to spend 10 million shillings, through an extremely painstaking process, and when they approve
the curriculum, they make it free for everyone else to use’. Due to the few staff members also, the process
of developing curricula is said to be very slow.
14
2. Varied standards: There is no set cost for that we need to address is developing an instructor
curriculum development. The CEO of CDACC curriculum and upgrading instructor capacities to
summed it all as ‘you come, and we tailor-make a implement the competency-based curricula’. This
process for you, that suits your money’. This makes said, CDACC could only poorly articulate the uptake
it difficult for planning. strategies for the new curricula.

3.Tension among government institutions:

The tension between KICD and CDACC, CDACC
and NITA, KNEC and NITA, CDACC and NITA is
clear. Clearly to an outsider, these government
institutions, all in the same Ministry (save for NITA),
are in competition with each other. Subsequently,
each of the players is an island with no sharing of
expertise or resources. This makes the building of
synergy impossible, while the resource wastage
following duplication (in this poorly-funded sub-
sector) rather regrettable.

4. Unclear path from curriculum development to

implementation
Of the 30 VTCs we visited during the landscape
mapping exercise, none was implementing the
CDACC curricula. Some indicated, ‘we have only
heard about it, but we have not seen the curricula.
We do not know when they are bringing it’. On the
other hand, CDACC blamed this situation to lack of an
Instructor curriculum: ‘We started the other way, by
first preparing curricula for trainees. The biggest gap

15
 6. Landscape of Courses in
Vocational Training Centres
The mapping exercise established a myriad of courses offered in the different VTCs. On average, each VTC
was offering around 7 training courses. Some private VTCs however had specialized to offer only a few (1-3)
courses, providing for greater institutional specialization.

6.1 Preference of Technical Courses in Vocational Training Centres

The reconnaissance study in 30 VTCs established that the three most preferred courses are Fashion design
& garment making, Motor vehicle technology and Building technology. In terms of gender, male students
preferred motor vehicle technology, building technology, metal processing technology, carpentry and
joinery, plumbing and computer and electronics. Female students, on the other hand, preferred Fashion
design & garment making, Hairdressing and beauty therapy, and Catering and housekeeping.

The Technical Courses offered in 30 VTCs

6.2 Summary of the Capabilities prioritized by vocational training centres

The following word crowds present the responses given by the 30 VTCs on the capabilities that they
prioritized in the four categories of values, life skills, … and technical skills.

1. Values 2. Life Skills

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 3. Social Emotional Learning 4. Cognitive/Academic Skills

6.3 Key Issues in Curriculum Implementation

Three key issues were identified as key in the implementation of TVET curricula, using the case of the 30
vocational training centres.

Disparity in entry levels and poor infrastructure

Asked the key challenges they were facing in delivering quality training, most VTCs (nearly all) cited the
disparity entry levels of the trainees as the biggest challenge. One asked, ‘how do you teach a class 8
dropout and a form 4 graduate in the same class, without demoralizing one, or leaving the other behind’? The
language of instruction was an issue, because many school dropouts could not comfortably communicate
in English, while those that had completed secondary school preferred English. The second most cited
challenge was poor infrastructure, described as inadequate physical resources. It was evident that most of
these institutions were using outdated technologies or no equipment at all for practical training. The esteem
(attitude) of the students was also cited as a problem, describing it as the ‘failure mentality’, which often
yielded dropout.

Gender imbalance
The imbalance in gender was clear, in both the general enrolment, and the choice of courses. The 30 VTCs
had a total enrolment of 3,183 students. Of these, 60 percent (1,922) were male and the rest 1,026 were female.
Further, the table below illustrates that the choice of courses was driven by gender attitudes. For instance,
three courses did not have a single female student across all the institutions: Building technology, metal
processing and carpentry. On the other hand, Fashion and Design, and Hairdressing were predominantly
female courses.

17
 Courses offered (frequency) and enrolments by Gender
Course Frequency Enrolments Enrolments Total
(Male) (Female) Enrolments
Fashion design & Garment making 24 3 176 179
Motor vehicle technology 19 182 5 187
Building technology 17 222 0 222
Metal processing technology 16 24 0 24
ICT 15 108 113 221
Hairdressing and beauty therapy 15 3 147 150
Carpentry and joinery 14 73 0 73
Plumbing 13 103 21 124
Computer and Electronics 13 133 9 142
Catering and housekeeping 13 27 129 156
Total 159 878 600 1478

Exam-orientation
Asked which method was used to assess the range of technical and non-technical skills, the response
was almost always – examination. A few skills were however assessed through practical work (with no
exam), a few capabilities (reported mostly for values) through observation. Such observation was however
unstructured, and no assessment reports were available.

6.4 Custom-made TVET curricula

Though minimal, ‘private’ curricula are evidenced. Civil society organizations, few players from private
sector, and even some training institutions are customizing their own curricula and offering short courses,
to meet specific training needs. These curricula have recognized and integrated wider range of values and
capabilities, though mostly targeted at employability, with little or no reference to capabilities for life. Seven
examples are given:

CAP-Youth Empowerment Institute (CAP-YEI): Has a 3-month training on various courses, adopted from
India, popularly referred to as the BEST model (Basic Employability Skills Training). This curriculum includes
life-skills training at beginning of course, and employability training at the end of the 3 months.

Generation Kenya: A program of the McKinsey. They have a tailor-made, 4-8 weeks curriculum targeting a
variety of service skills areas, including restaurant/retail and sales.

Toyota Academy: Following frustrations of not finding competent mechanics to employ, Toyota established
an academy that qualifies mechanics, based in Nairobi’s South C. However, they only admit mechanics
who have some formal training from elsewhere, and with minimum of two years working experience. The
training is fully-funded, 3-month program.

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Kenya Youth Employment and Skills (K-YES) Program: Funded by USAID, the program is implemented
by RTI International. With skills and vocational training designed in coordination with local industry,
K-YES focuses on building local relationships and capacity to increase the efficiency, effectiveness and
sustainability of education and employment outcomes.

Life Skills Promoters (LISP): LISP aims at empowering the youth holistically using appropriate life skills
based interventions. Since its inception in 1999, LISP has worked through and collaborated with schools,
religious institutions, community groups and relevant government departments to equip thousands of
young people for life and lobby for the creation of facilitative policies and legislations for children and
youth empowerment.

International Youth Foundation (IYF): Known mostly for the Passport to Success assessment, IYF seeks to
equip young men and women with the skills and training to enter growth sectors such as information and
communications technology (ICT), as well as supporting young entrepreneurs with business planning and
access to finance.

Edukans: Edukans has developed the EDUworks initiative. This approach seeks to sustainably link youth,
training institutes and businesses to ensure employment and economic development. The idea is to train
youth while linked to networks for holistic development and connection to the job markets.

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 7. Funding interests in
Kenya’s TVET
So far, the funders of TVET identified fall in three categories: Bilaterals, International Private Foundations
and local Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives.

7.1 Bilateral Interests in TVET

USAID USAID has strong interests in youth empowerment, and various programs are funded
under this. The funding of TVET is primarily through the K-YES program at RTI Interna-
tional, Generation and other smaller initiatives.
German The German government has arguably the longest TVET interests in Kenya. Several
Government institutions are supporting TVET. GIZ has launched a mega project for implementing
Dual Training in three TVET institutions, featuring strong collaboration with industry.
The German Chamber of Commerce is supporting vocational training, and also
provides secretariat to the Permanent Working Group in TVET. The YouMatch
programme has funded several studies and evaluations in TVET, the latest being the
study testing the scalability of CAP-YEI’s BEST model (2018).
Canadian Canadian interests in Kenya’s TVET are opaque, though rather strong. Recently for
Government instance, IDRC (in partnership with ILO and INCLUDE) announced a big call for skills
for youth employment. The World University Canada, and other allied parties have
been supporting TVETA and KUCCPS to improve the TVET governance system, and
the rebranding of TVET. For instance, it was largely Canadian interests that funded the
new TVETA strategy launched in April 2018.
DfID The mapping exercise has not yet traced any explicit funding from the British
Government. However, DfID and British Council recently concluded a series of studies
on youth in Kenya. Given that training and skills emerged as key priorities from these
studies, it could be predicted that this may drive funding interests for TVET.
The World In partnership with NITA, the World Bank has been implementing a big project
Bank targeting mainly life skills and entrepreneurship training for youth in Kenya. The
current project is the Kenya Youth Employment Opportunity Project (KYEOP)
targeting over 280,000 youth (18-29 years) in Kenya. The project ends in 2021.
Dutch The Dutch Embassy, through EP-Nuffic, created a funding window under the Capacity
Embassy Development in Higher Education (NICHE) programme on the topic “Strengthening
the capacities of Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA)
for enhancing the performance of the TVET education system in Kenya. Key focus has
been supporting TVETA in rebranding of TVET in Kenya.
SIDA The funding interest is not very clear, but SIDA is funding Generation, since 2018
UNICEF UNICEF has a new global strategy on the Second Decade, with focus on adolescent
employability skills. A situational analysis was concluded in Kenya in 2018, a
Kenya strategy developed, focusing largely on secondary school interventions for
employability skills training
UNESCO In Kenya, UNESCO has interests on a national skills competition and quality assurance
in TVET. They have developed a model called STEP, for entrepreneurship training of
students, including industry-based mentoring
NEPAD Has established a new program called Skills Initiative for Africa (SIFA). Preparing to
open three funding windows to TVET innovations, grants of 900,000-3 million Euros
each. Kenya is among the 7 focus African countries.

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7.2 International Private Foundations

MasterCard Is arguably the largest funder of TVET in Kenya, outside of government. The Foun-
Foundation dation’s new strategy, Young Africa Works, is targeted at youth employment, with
growing investments in TVET
Aspen Has a new partnership programme dubbed Global Opportunity Youth Initiative (GOYI)
Institute (with Prudential Foundation and others). The program targets the connection of youth
to job opportunities, and has selected Nairobi as one of their five global hubs to
implement this campaign
Canadian Has unveiled its new strategy, who’s core focus is Workforce for the Future. The focus
Government is on investment in people growth as the catalytic option for economic growth.
Blue Haven The mapping exercise has not yet traced any explicit funding from the British
Initiative Government. However, DfID and British Council recently concluded a series of studies
on youth in Kenya. Given that training and skills emerged as key priorities from these
studies, it could be predicted that this may drive funding interests for TVET.
Omidyar In March 2019, Omidyar Network has kicked off a research on the skilling and
Network workforce readiness ecosystems in Kenya and South Africa. Omidyar is creating
systems maps that include current interventions (and their levels of effectiveness),
funder and policy landscapes, data on supply and demand for skills from industries
- and the forces that drive youth unemployment in these countries. This research will
identify the gaps, needs, and levers to catalyze systemic shifts for the empowerment
of youth across Kenya and South Africa.
Echidna In October 2018, Echidna commissioned a study in line with their new strategy on
Giving non-cognitive skills for adolescent girls. This skills mapping study was conducted in
Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and India. The draft report is out, and will inform Echidna’s
investments over the next couple of years.
IKEA We have not accessed IKEA’s strategy to establish the actual funding interest for
Foundation Kenya’s TVET, but we know that IKEA is funding Generation and other skills training
innovations across some African countries
Siemens Is conducting in 2019 an experiment in several primary schools on new approaches to
Stiftung STEM, seen as forming early TVET attitudes. This vocational orientation experiment is
currently running in Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria

7.3 Local Foundations and CSR Initiatives

Housing Their vision is articulated as ‘Army of 1 million artisans’. Working with both public and
Finance private sector partners we facilitate industry relevant technical skills, provide working
Foundation capital for entrepreneurs and linkages for practical skills experience within the build-
ing and construction industry
KCB Runs the 2Jiajiri Programme. The objective is to empower and equip unemployed
Foundation and out-of-school youth to grow micro enterprises by providing them with technical
skill training opportunities as well as up-skilling and certifying existing micro-
entrepreneurs who wish to move their business from the informal to the formal sector
Barclays Runs an apprenticeship program targeting the equipping of youth with work-relevant
Foundation skills and exposure
Safaricom Has unveiled a new strategy, with education as one of focus areas. TVET has
Foundation been identified as an investment area. At onset, Safaricom seeks to revolutionize
training in building and construction, especially through injecting support for digital
technologies in training
Simba A foundation of Simba Colt in Kenya (Mitsubishi), the foundation is supporting various
Foundation training centres to improve training in Motor Vehicle Mechanics, similar to the initiative
of Toyota Foundation

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 8. Networks and Key
Convenings in TVET
Two national networks and one key convening have been identified.

The Permanent Working Group (PWG): This is a high-level platform for exchange between government,
industry and academia on matters of TVET policy. The Working Group was established through support
by GIZ in 2016, and even now, the Secretariat is hosted at the German Chamber of Commerce (AHK).
The chair of PWG is Dr. Kevit Desai, though since he now became the Principal Secretary, he will be
transitioning out in May. The PWG has now (February 2019) been formalized and registered as a Trust.
The PWG meets quarterly and has large membership of around 80 institutions, including industry. In their
last meeting on Wednesday 19th March 2019, the PWG announced interested institutions to vie for board
membership starting May 2019. Key milestones achieved is the hosting of two national skills shows in
Nairobi, which are contributing to showcasing and influencing perceptions on TVET. The last show (8th
-10th Feb, 2019) attracted more than 20,000 youth, and around 160 exhibitors from TVET and industry.

Kenya Association of Technical Training Institutions (KATTI): The Kenya Association of Technical Training
Institutions (KATTI) is the body that co-ordinates the activities of Technical Training Institutes all over the
country. It was started in the year 1997. The Association provides a common forum for identifying common
interests to the institutions and determining strategies for addressing such issues for the purpose of the
qualitative and quality improvement of Technical Education and Training in Kenya. The association has a
membership of around 100 TVET institutions. The association is currently chaired by Glory Mutungi, the
Principal at Nairobi Technical Training Institute. Since 2017, the association has been holding annual TVET
conferences and TVET fairs.

Rift Valley Technical Training Institute (RVTTI): For the last seven years, RVTTI has been convening the
(only) annual TVET conference in Kenya. The 2018 conference (7th edition) was held at the institute 21-23
June 2018. The RVTTI also founded the Kenya Journal of TVET, which grew now to the Africa Journal of
TVET, so far published three issues with over 60 articles.

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