SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SKILLS FOR AFRIC A’S DE VELOPMENT APRIL 2014 88637 SWAZILAND: Building Skills for High-Priority Sectors Country Context Key Messages The Kingdom of Swaziland is one of the smallest African countries. Its economy is fairly diversified: n One of Swaziland’s key challenges over the next two decades is to productively employ a large working age population. agriculture, forestry, and mining account for about 9 percent of gross domestic product n Key sectors that could drive Swaziland’s future economic growth include tourism, food (GDP); manufacturing (importantly, textiles and processing, manufacturing and mining. For the workforce to meet the skills needs of these sugar-related processing, metal works and light sectors, the current technical and vocational education and training (TVET) system needs to urgently be aligned with labor market demand. manufacturing) represents roughly 41 percent; and services, particularly government services, n The private provision of TVET plays a significant role in skills development in the country. constitute about 46 percent. n The Ministry of Education and Training is prioritizing plans for improvement of TVET to ensure smooth economic development for the country. While the Swazi economy was one of the fastest growing in the world in the 1980s, growth has n As the size of the working age population increases relative to dependents, Swaziland could reap a demographic dividend if it makes key investments in human capital today. slowed down significantly in recent years. The economy is still recovering from the 2011 fiscal crisis and the government is working to put in place policies to stimulate economic growth. was 1.9 percent in 2012 and 2.8 percent in 2013, Skills Development The government and development partners following a contraction of 0.7 percent in 2011. through Technical and have adopted several promising initiatives to These GDP growth rates will need to increase for job creation to keep pace with the number Vocational Education improve productivity, including schemes that of new entrants and current job seekers in the and Training (TVET) help overcome coordination problems among smallholders and facilitate irrigation access. labor market. The unemployment rate has TVET PROVISION TODAY Sectors such as mining, tourism, food processing risen from 38 percent in 2007 to 40.7 percent in 2010. According to the UN Swaziland 2012 At present, there are about 70 TVET institutions and manufacturing have been identified as potential areas for growth and foreign survey, out of 1,334 interviewed households, in Swaziland. Twenty-seven of them are public, investment. 7.3 percent had at least one member who had 29 are private and for-profit, and 14 are run by lost a job during the past 12 months, 4.4 percent NGOs, churches and communities (private but Swaziland is expected to undergo a non-profit). The TVET institutions collectively of households had experienced wage cuts, 4.9 demographic transition over the next two employ 767 trainers and offer 415 training percent had reduced business operations, and decades. Working-age population growth programs in 60 subject areas to 6,881 trainees 4.7 percent had been informed that one member will outpace population growth and the (of whom 56 percent are females). Fifty-five would lose a job or experience a wage cut. If this dependency ratio will fall. While countries can situation is left unaddressed, it could perpetuate percent of the training programs are short-term benefit tremendously from such a demographic a vicious cycle of high unemployment, high (less than 12 months) and many of them are shift, this will not automatically translate into poverty and low growth. vocational. The general completion rate is around higher economic growth or an increase in the 80 percent. Subject areas include sewing, employment rate for Swaziland. Whereas most existing enterprises in the farming, carpentry, business management, and country do not demand highly trained or computer programming and education. CURRENT EMPLOYMENT educated workers, skills shortages may be LANDSCAPE limiting investment in new sectors that Given the fact that only a third of the Provisional estimates by the Central Bank of have growth potential. Pro-active skills institutions are public and enroll about a third Swaziland and the Ministry of Economic Planning development is therefore very important in of the total trainees, the private provision and Development indicate that real GDP growth anticipation of new jobs being created. of TVET plays a significant role in skills development in the country. Graduates who 38 percent). The public system serves only about programs with a large number of trainees; hardly completed their training from the private, for- a third of the total trainees, but supports more any of the TVET institutions offer training related profit institutions seem to have a better chance than half of the total trainers. These suggest that to food processing and hospitality, but there is of finding a job than those from the public or most public TVET institutions in Swaziland are considerable overlap with 20 institutions offering non-profit institutions. performing under capacity. computer programming and 19 institutions offering fashion design courses. A 2008 review on public With a youth population (age 15-24) of roughly Lack of strong quality assurance mechanisms at TVET provision conducted by MoET highlighted 314,000 and secondary school enrollment of both national and institutional levels. The quality the challenges facing Swazi companies in finding about 90,000, the current TVET system caters of TVET depends on admission procedures, appropriately-skilled mechanical, electrical, to very few people in Swaziland, and is far from trainer qualifications, curriculum design, training electronic and computer technicians. The review sufficient in terms of meeting the needs of the methods, quality assurance mechanisms, also revealed the low quality of training received, in country’s economic recovery and growth. Only governance and professional affiliation. Most that many TVET graduates had to receive retraining about a third of the 70 institutions consider private TVET institutions have a quality council or skills upgrading once they were employed. In themselves at the tertiary level (post secondary or committee to oversee the quality of their short, many TVET graduates are not ready for the education). training programs and the development of job market and TVET provision is driven by supply new programs. But only less than half of rather than demand. KEY AREAS FOR POLICY the public TVET institutions have established INTERVENTIONS such quality control mechanisms. Forty-nine STRENGTHENING Recognizing the need to upgrade the skills of institutions report a relationship with at least THE TVET SYSTEM both the growing youth population and the one professional association but it is unclear as to whether these TVET-affiliated professional The TVET system in Swaziland will remain current labor force, the Ministry of Education associations have the capacity to provide their resource-constrained for a while. But efforts and Training (MoET) of Swaziland and the World respective qualification standards and guide could be made to improve efficiency in the Bank jointly examined the country’s current quality improvement. current TVET system. For one, the trainee-trainer TVET provision and produced a report which ratio could be increased. A sustainable financing has illuminated the following potential areas for Insufficient public investment in TVET. Besides model must be identified through research into policy intervention to improve the TVET system. salaries of trainers classified as civil servants the variation in tuition fees and salaries across Geographical Fragmentation. Swaziland has four paid for by the government, investment in the regions. Development of public-private administrative regions—Hhohho, Lubombo, TVET in Swaziland is limited. The operating partnerships could be beneficial for funding Manzini, and Shiselweni. The differing costs of most institutions are largely covered of TVET, on-the-job training and curricula populations and socioeconomic conditions of by tuition fees and donations. International development. Breaking down TVET into two each region have shaped their TVET institutions in experience shows that TVET provision is costly, parts, one for vocational education and one terms of size, infrastructure, financing, operations, yet 76 percent of TVET institutions claim they for technical education/training, with different training methods, quality and outputs (Table 1). do not receive any subsidies. Appropriate target groups and different qualification This has resulted in a fragmented system without government investment and close partnerships requirements, may help make improvement enough central coordination and with huge between the public and private sector are policies more effective. variation in quality among its providers. needed for TVET to have a positive impact on national economic development. While the National Qualifications Framework Low efficiency, especially of public TVET providers. is still being developed, some work on There is great variation in institutional size Skills-to-labor market gap. Skills development— quality improvement could be initiated in the and trainee-trainer ratio among the TVET through a TVET system well aligned with labor meantime, for example, capacity building institutions. Public institutions collectively market needs—is a critical strategic element programs on quality assurance. With the have more trainers for fewer trainees (6:1) of Swaziland’s economic recovery. Yet there is increased availability of technology and demand than the for-profit (13:1) and non-profit (11:1) little alignment between what the current TVET for more marketable skills, the modality of private institutions. Enrollment in public TVET system provides and what the labor markets TVET instruction and learning has evolved in institutions has declined in recent years, from need specifically to supply growth sectors with the past decade. Investigating currently-used 2,858 in 2007 to 2,482 in 2013 (down by 13 mechanical, electric, electronic and food processing modalities could provide useful information percent); yet the number of trainers increased technicians. For example, in 2013, mechanical for the improvement of curriculum design and from 297 to 411 during the same period (up by engineering was the only one in the top 10 TVET instructional effectiveness. 2 SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SKILLS FOR AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT Government Efforts training system in the context of a National n An internally efficient system with to Improve TVET Qualifications Framework (NQF) through mechanisms for portability of qualifications competency based education and training, articulating diverse forms of provision, VISION AND MISSION cognizant of prior learning for all, inclusive including the formal, non-formal and MoET issued several national policy documents of the socioeconomically disadvantaged, informal, having provisions for flexible such as The National Technical and Vocational unemployed, special target groups, and exit and entry to both academic and skills Education and Training and Skill Development incorporating gender sensitivity.” related pathways. (TVETSD) Policy and Strategy (May 2010), The A system that is accessible in terms of PLANS FOR IMPROVEMENT n Education Sector Strategic Plan 2010-2022 equitable distribution and participation (November 2010), and The Swaziland Education These are the main elements of the MoET to all individuals needing skills for and Training Sector Policy (April 2011), outlining strategic approach towards the upgrading of TVET: employability in the formal sector. a vision and mission for the country’s TVETSD n A competent and employable work force system and plans for its improvement. n A financially sustainable system equipped with skills to address the diverse funded through diverse sources that MoET would like to “develop a quality, social and economic development needs of include the government, employers, relevant, and sustainable TVETSD system as the individual and the country. end users, fees, donations and income an integral part of the social and economic n An effective governance and management generation activities by the providers. strategy for the Kingdom of Swaziland” system with clear roles and responsibilities, The funding disbursement should be through “the provision of a market-driven, accountable to the national Assembly accountable and must benefit different quality technical and vocational education and through MoET. types of learners. Figure 1. Labor Market Indicators Working Age Population and Dependency Ratio 1,200 75 Working age population (15-64yr) 70 1,000 65 Dependency ratio (%) 800 60 55 in ‘000 600 50 400 45 40 200 35 0 30 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050 Working age population (16-64) Dependent ratio All ages (15+) Youth 60 60 51.8 53.3 52.3 50 46.8 50 40.7 40 38.0 37.2 33.5 40 28.2 28.5 30.9 30 30 26.8 20 20 13.3 12.8 10 10 0 0 Unemployment Unemployment Labor force Employment to Unemployment Labor force Unemployment to rate (strict) rate (relaxed) participation population rate rate (strict) participation rate population rate 2007 2010 2007 2010 SWAZILAND: BUILDING SKILLS FOR HIGH-PRIORITY SECTORS 3 To achieve these development strategy goals, the establishment of a national qualification towards implementation of the strategies, MoET has reached out to development partners framework. The World Bank has assisted MoET additional support will help MoET align the for technical assistance. For example, the in assessing the current state of the country’s TVETSD improvement plan with the national European Union has been providing support for TVET provision. As the government works socioeconomic development agenda. Table 1. Distribution of Institutions by Region and Type Region Type of Inst. HHOHHO LUBOMBO MANZINI SHISELWENI Total Public 8 6 9 4 27 Private 12 1 13 3 29 Others 4 3 5 2 14 Total 24 10 27 9 70 Source: Assessment survey conducted jointly by the World Bank and MoET, May 2013 Table 2. Number of Trainees and Trainers by Type of TVET Institution Institutions Trainees Trainers Type of Inst. No. % No. % % female No. % % female Public 27 39% 2482 36% 44% 411 54% 68% Private 29 41% 3322 48% 68% 255 33% 38% Others 14 20% 1077 16% 45% 101 13% 39% Total 70 100% 6881 100% 56% 767 100% 54% Source: Assessment survey conducted jointly by the World Bank and MoET, May 2013 Table 3. Top 10 Programs with Largest Number of Trainees in 2011-2013 2011 2012 2013 1 Business Management Business Management Education 2 Computer Programming Education Business Management 3 Education Computer Programming Computer Programming 4 Mechanical Engineering Mechanical Engineering Mechanical Engineering 5 Secretarial Dress and Fashion Civil Engineering 6 Sewing Accounting & Finance House Wiring and Electrical Work 7 Dress and Fashion Information Technology Information Technology 8 Accounting & Finance Secretarial Work Catering 9 Medical Civil Engineering Association of Accounting Technicians 10 Civil Engineering Catering Decoration Source: Assessment survey conducted jointly by the World Bank and MoET, May 2013 MORE ON THE TOPIC • Rapid Assessment of Technical and Vocational Education and Training in Swaziland. World Bank. April 2014. • Assessment Survey conducted jointly by the World Bank and MoET. May 2013. • Policy Note on Skills and Direct Foreign Investment in Swaziland. World Bank. 2010. • The Education System in Swaziland. World Bank. 2010.