Vocational Education and Training (VET) Project

Project completed
VET-sdudent
VET Project targets six occupations in the Western Mongolian VET schools. A student is practicing to be an electrician. © SDC © sdc

The overall goal of this project is to enable rural youth to participate in quality Vocational Education and Training (VET) in order to become more employable and to help them overcome or avoid the poverty trap. The major strategic elements of the project include: a) A focus on young people in rural areas, both male and female; b) Alignment with Mongolian Government policy priorities and support for a high level of national ownership and active political will in relation to the issue; c) A focus on the western region of Mongolia, where there are no other donor activities or mining investments; d) Promotion of a focused intervention (VET) that has a strong and positive correlation with people’s employability and the country’s economic and social development; and e) Benefiting from an important Swiss comparative advantage.

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Mongolia
Vocational training
nothemedefined
Vocational training
01.01.2011 - 31.12.2015
CHF  4’460’000
Background

The Government of Mongolia is aware of the high level of unemployment, which is partly the result of a skills and job mismatch. Because of the increasing demand for a skilled labour force coming on the back of national economic growth prospects, the government made job creation a priority area and began reforming the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector. Mongolian Parliament amended a Law on VET, creating a new legal framework and financing mechanism, with different resources coming from both private and state resources. The heart of the new institutional structure is the National Council on VET, with equal participation from the private and public sectors. An independent government Agency of TVET (ATVET) was created to be the council’s implementing body.

Objectives

The project contributes to better employability of young women and men through high quality VET.

Target groups

Primary beneficiaries: Youth and unemployed adults, graduates of general education schools, former herders in rural areas, teachers and instructors from VET schools.

Target group: Six VET schools in western Mongolia, including the Western Regional Methodological Centre in Zavkhan aimag.

Indirect beneficiary: The private sector, local, regional and national economies, society, local professional associations, local VET partners, ATVET.

Results

Achieved results:  

  • Increased enrolment in VET schools thanks to a nationwide campaign aimed at promoting a positive image of VET;
  • Improved teaching skills and elaborated competency-based training packages spanning six occupations; and
  • Enhanced collaboration between VET schools, job seekers and employers through such activities as job fairs and career counselling.

 


Expected results:  

Outcome 1: The attitude towards VET has positively changed in the six western aimags.

Outcome 2 – The Regional Methodological Centre (RMC) in Zavkhan aimag is capable of being a decentralised office of ATVET, implementing policies and providing services to six VET schools in the region.

Outcome 3 – VET schools in six western aimags provide demand-driven training in selected occupations.


Results from previous phases:  

- National ownership is high; an MoU with the ATVET enabled joint planning at all stages.

- The Logical Framework was developed by VET schools in the six target western aimags and stakeholders in the region. INBAS, a German consulting company, was selected by tender to support the project design process.


Directorate/federal office responsible SDC
Credit area Development cooperation
Project partners Contract partner
Private sector
  • Foreign private sector North


Other partners

- Some activities of VET project of the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) will be scaled up in western aimags.

- EU, GIZ, SDC and possibly CIDA have agreed to harmonise their activities.

EU: Macro and meso level in formal VET at the national level.

SDC: Meso and micro levels in formal VET in the west.

GIZ: Micro level in informal VET in the west.

CIDA: Focus on the mining regions, replicating the best practice of other donors.

Donor’s coordination will be overseen by the ATVET.

Budget Current phase Swiss budget CHF    4’460’000 Swiss disbursement to date CHF    4’381’940
Project phases Phase 3 01.01.2019 - 30.06.2021   (Completed) Phase 2 01.01.2016 - 31.12.2018   (Completed)

Phase 1 01.01.2011 - 31.12.2015   (Completed)