A total of 1043 graduates attended a three day
convocation for Technical Training Institute (TTI) and Institute of Zorig
chhusum (IZC) graduates in the capital which was scheduled on 29th – 31st October
2012 at
YDF Hall, Thimphu. This is the first ever convocation for Technical Vocation and
Education Graduates (TVET). It was organized mainly to give them prior
recognition like other university graduates. The program was initiated by the
labor ministry (MoLHR).
Labor Minister Dorji Wangdi said there is critical need of
skilled Human resources to drive and sustain economic growth. Therefore
investing on TVET not only produces skilled workforce but also helps to sustain
growth.
However there is a national concern as many youth are not willing
to take up vocational training and consequently the kind of jobs it leads to
due to the perceived low image of TVET related employment.
He said they are mostly employed in private and corporate
sectors, which discourages the youth to join technical vocation. And so the
government has changed the training process in the institutes through Mckinsey
projects. The duration-based training was replaced by competency-based
trainings. TVET also has its Bhutan Vocational Qualification Framework (BVQF)
like National Qualification Framework for Education.
“They can now upgrade their qualification for tertiary education
and have a world of work and world of education,” said Lyonpo Dorji Wangdi. This
hinders in combating rising youth unemployment, mismatch of demand and supply
of skills and also enhancing economic competitiveness of the national labor
force.
Lyonpo Dorji Wangdi said every year more than 450 trainees
graduate from the institutes but the progress is very slow in terms of
producing knowledge based skilled workers as demanded by the present scenario.
