Abstract

The role played by professional training in the socio-economic development of countries is decisive. In the case of Africa especially, there are two ways to ensure the professional preparation of young apprentices. In the public system, professional training is designed for the minority of youth having secondary education and is oriented towards accessing scarce jobs in the modern economy. However, most jobs are located in the informal sector of the economy. The traditional apprenticeship system in the workplace is inadequate. This apprenticeship system has several weaknesses among which its widespread conservatism as far as the transmission of knowledge is concerned and its inability to train youth for the required increase in productivity and quality. The assumption underlying that research project is that the best economic performance is obtained by craftsmen of the informal sector when they know how to combine technical academic training with traditional apprenticeship. Based on experiences of the Hans Seidel Foundation in Togo and Benin, the research project will try to develop a dual professional training model adapted for Eastern Africa. This model would be based on the development of a partnership in professional training between these stakeholders of the education community and those of the informal productive sector. This partnership will translate into the methodology which would be participative.

Post-Project Summary

This project studied the conditions under which the informal and formal sector could partner in vocational training. Dual training of informal sector apprentices in Bénin and Togo - on the job and in a training centre that recreates informal sector working conditions - proved well adapted to the needs of both apprentices and workshop managers. In fact, the workshop managers participated in the training on both sites, which made the process clear to them and as a result facilitated their collaboration. The project had a strong gender component. It was noted that even in traditionally masculine activities, the girls performed better than the boys. It was strongly recommended that parents as well as workshop managers be enlisted to ensure that young apprentices get the most out of the training and that professional employment for trained apprentices be assured. This suggested that the state could eventually create bridges between the mechanisms for job creation and the incubation of enterprises by offering access to financing for artisanal enterprises among other things.

The results of the project were presented at an evaluation workshop to an audience comprising, in addition to researchers, trainers and artisans from the two countries, officials responsible for vocational training in several West African countries, including Togo and Bénin. Certain workshop managers affirmed that they hire only apprentices trained by way of the dual training method because they tend to be better prepared from a technical, ethical, etc. standpoint. The project allow the researchers to pursue and develop contacts with ministries of vocational training who are engaged in a reformulation of their policies in that domain. The project also provided an occasion to rejuvenate the two ROCARE teams and allow them to develop contact with the Hanns Seidel Foundation, which decided to carry out a second phase of the project.

Recipient Institution(s)