The Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (TEVTA) has failed to get a $100 million competitive grant by the World Bank, which aims to improve the quality of instructors and curriculum, for the second consecutive year.
The grant is meant to cover expenditure on curriculum development and capacity building of faculty members. A Punjab government officer close to the development said the grant covers trainings and skill enhancement projects for instructors so they can train the youth in modern skills required to meet the growing requirements of international markets. He said the training the TEVTA provides was outmoded and did not even meet the demands of even the domestic market.
Two years ago, the World Bank approached the TEVTA’s management and offered $100 million assistance in the form of a competitive grant. The TEVTA was asked to submit a strategic plan on the help it required in designing the programmes. The TEVTA replied that it only required help in building infrastructure as the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC) designed the curricula for the TEVTA.
This year, the World Bank requested the Punjab government to direct the authority to develop a strategic plan to be considered for the grant. The government then told the TEVTA to develop a plan as well as a time frame for developing new curricula and training.
The Punjab government had allocated Rs1.5 billion for the TEVTA in the Annual Development Programme 2013-14. Utilisation has been reported at 20 per cent.
Industries Secretary Irfan Ali, who has the additional charge of TEVTA chairman since February 2013, says the authority has been negotiating terms with World Bank since last September. He said the grant was meant for curriculum activities and equipment but TEVTA needed buildings first.
“We have now reached a consensus with the donor agency and will soon submit a concept paper to the government in this regard,” Ali said. He said he was trying to push for better utilisation of funds. A meeting will soon be held in this regard, he said.
The TEVTA was established 1999 to help develop a competitive workforce by providing demand-driven, standardised, dynamic and integrated technical education and vocational training.
The authority has been operating more than 370 technical collages and vocational institutions in the province. It offers a degree programme, an associate engineering diploma and more than 50 skill certificates.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 8th, 2014.