Durham College (DC) is pleased to announce its participation in two initiatives in Kenya with Young Africa Works: Youth Employability through TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) program.

Facilitated by Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) in partnership with Mastercard Foundation, the first initiative will be undertaken over 12 months, focusing on preparing a new industry-driven training program for a September 2021 launch, and the second, which will be undertaken over the next five years, will focus on developing and scaling up training of pre- and in-service trainers to deliver competency-based education and training (CBET) instruction and capacity development for leadership and management.

Increasing industry-driven training programs

Working as the lead institution on the first initiative, DC, in collaboration with Algonquin College and Kenyan partners, seeks to increase the participation of young Kenyans, particularly women, in market-relevant skills training programs. Using a partner-driven, participatory approach, the goal is to ultimately grow the number of young people in dignified and fulfilling work in the Big Four (food security, affordable housing, manufacturing and affordable healthcare) and digital sectors.

DC’s involvement comes as a continuation of the Kenya Education for Employment Program (KEFEP), which saw the college work with The Kitale National Polytechnic and The Eldoret National Polytechnic providing support for institutional leadership and assisting with the implementation of Kenya’s technical and vocational education and training reforms.

This unique collaborative project will leverage the strengths of each partner to quickly implement and accelerate its overall impact.

Over the course of 12 months, all involved in the project will work to develop student-centred learning materials, gender equity and inclusion strategies, and industry linkages.

Exchanges will also occur between Kenya and Canada, allowing Kenyan trainers to conduct benchmarking visits to Canada in order to be exposed to CBET methodology, industry workshops and courses that are currently in use. Canadian trainers and subject-matter experts visiting Kenya will continue to build relationships with their Kenyan partners and develop a better understanding of the local context.

Developing and scaling up pre- and in-service training

DC is also supporting a second initiative, alongside project lead Algonquin College, and Camosun College, which will give current trainers and leaders the skills they need to successfully deliver CBET education.

This will be done by embedding its CBET principles within the theory and practice of their preparatory courses, while better aligning them with newly developed national standards, where modules focus on the different learning needs of young women and young men.

The development and scaling-up of pre- and in-service instruction will ensure that up to 9,000 new TVET trainers with CBET methodologies will be deployed.

The Canadian colleges will also work with the Kenyan partners to explore opportunities for TVET trainers to upgrade or maintain their technical skills through short-term industry placements as an element of in-service training.

“We are very excited about both of these initiatives,” said Marianne Marando, Associate Vice-President, Academic (Enrolment and International Education), Durham College. “DC has a longstanding history of working with institutions across Kenya and thanks to the Mastercard Foundation’s generous funding, and facilitation by CICan, we are able to work alongside other Canadian colleges to lend our expertise, helping to further refine skills training to meet the country’s growing needs.”