By Ambrose Gahene
The Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council on Wednesday briefed journalists at the Uganda Media Centre, some of the important changes taking place in Uganda’s TVET system.
Mr. Moses Kasakya, TVET Executive Director, said TVET is no longer being treated simply as an alternative route for people who do not pursue academic education.
“It is a central instrument for building the skilled human capital required for Uganda’s industrialization, employment, productivity and ultimately socio-economic transformation”, he said.
Mr. Kasakya said Uganda’s TVET system is a system of skills development, regulation, training, assessment, certification and progression.
“This System has its legal foundation in the TVET Act, 2025. The Act establishes the TVET Council as the statutory body responsible for overseeing implementation of the TVET system, advising the Minister, regulating and setting standards, licensing and accrediting providers and trainers, accrediting TVET programmes, managing the Skills Development Fund and registering and regulating artisans, craftsmen, technicians and technologists’, he added.
He enumerated TVET important players to include; the Ministry responsible for TVET, which provides policy direction and overall leadership, TVET Council, which is the regulator and quality-assurance authority, which establishes standards, licenses providers and trainers, accredits programmes and ensures that the TVET system operates according to national standards.
“Third, there are TVET Assessment Boards. These are two; Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board (UVTAB), responsible for assessment and certification of competencies acquired through formal and informal TVET, and the Uganda Health Professions Assessment Board(UHPAB), responsible for assessment and certification of health professionals under TVET”, he pointed out.
He also listed TVET providers to include; Skills Development Centres, Vocational Training Institutes, Technical Colleges, National Polytechnics and National Technical Universities.
Mr. Kasakya said TVET Providers work with the TVET trainers, where the trainers translate curricula and occupational standards into actual learning and practical competence.
“Fifth, there are employers and industry, who are not supposed to be merely consumers of TVET graduates. The industry is expected to participate actively in defining the skills that the Labour market and Uganda in general needs”
“This is where the Sector Skills Expert Committees become particularly important. So, when we speak about TVET reform, we are talking about strengthening the entire chain, which comprises Labour-market demand, occupational standards, qualifications, curriculum, training, assessment, certification, employment and further progression”, he further emphasized.
Mr. Kasakya, who was accompanied by TVET Council members at the media briefing, said for the trainer, TVET provides clarity about the competences that must be developed and assessed, while for the employer, it provides a clearer understanding of what a particular TVET qualification represents in terms of competence.
“And for Uganda, it makes our graduates competitive because it supports the recognition and mobility of our skills nationally, regionally and internationally”, he further added.