The Australia Pacific Training Coalition (APTC) recently held a joint workshop discussing how TVET change happens from the perspectives of TVET Stakeholders to strengthen TVET provision in the Solomon Islands.

The workshop was attended by thirty-nine participants from the TVET sector who discussed the better alignment of TVET provisions with national priorities for economic development moving forward. They confirmed three priority action areas as a result.

The first action area is for TVET training to closely align with national and international labour market needs. Secondly, the need for continued investments in TVET from multiple stakeholders and, thirdly, for quality TVET provisions to be pursued through a host of agreed actions.

The participants committed to revisiting these priorities and assessing progress after one year.

Led by Abigail Chang, APTC Country Director for the Solomon Islands and Kiribati, and Carol Offer, APTC's Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Officer, this is the fourth meeting in a series of workshops that commenced in 2019 and was last hosted by APTC in February 2022.

The participants representing government ministries, development partners, the Solomon Islands Association of Vocational Rural Training Centre (SIAVRTC) board members, education authorities, training providers, civil society, and the private sector convened at this workshop to review the progress over the last 12 months and to develop a joint work plan towards positive TVET changes in the coming year. 

Ms Chang said that APTC, in consultation with the Solomon Islands Association of Vocational Rural Training Centres (SIAVRTC), will continue to bring together TVET stakeholders to review sectoral progress, troubleshoot barriers to change and chart collaborative strategies.

In his opening remarks, Mika Kontiainen, the Counsellor for Human Development at the Australian High Commission in the Solomon Islands, noted the importance of TVET to economic growth and preparing Solomon Islanders for employment opportunities in Solomon Islands and overseas.

"Your feedback, observations, and suggestions in this workshop are crucial! You are aware of the difficulties that the Solomon Islands' TVET sector has and is experiencing. Your insights will help identify gaps, developing needs and opportunities for positive change in the future," said Mr Kontiainen.