GITEGA November 2nd (ABP) – The Burundian senators unanimously approved the bill on the ratification by the Republic of Burundi of a grant agreement for the financing of the project to support the improvement of skills and the employability of women and young people (PACEF). That bill was presented Thursday by the Minister of National Education and Scientific Research, Mr. François Havyarimana, during the plenary assembly which was chaired by the Burundi Senate President, Mr. Emmanuel Sinzohagera, to the Gitega hemicycle.
In his presentation, the Minister in charge of National Education underlined the relevance of this support project for improving the skills and employability of women and young people, which is aligned with the National Development Plan 2018- 2027 and the National Youth Policy 2016-2026 aimed at developing the country’s human capital, improving employment outcomes for young people. He recalled that this agreement to finance a donation of eighty million US dollars ($ 80,000,000 USD) was signed on August 16, 2021 by the government of Burundi and the International Development Association (IDA).
The objective of the project is to improve the access of women and young people to training opportunities in skills development and entrepreneurship that are oriented towards the labor market, underlined Mr. Havyarimana. That project therefore aims to restructure and upgrade 100 vocational training and apprenticeship establishments in the various provinces of the country and in sectors with job growth.
The training will focus on the alternating learning of theoretical and practical courses and will allow sufficient time for internships in companies. That project also aims to update training programs, set up teaching materials and appropriate equipment, as well as retrain teachers. It also aims to integrate young people by relying on professional support and guidance.
The project will also contribute to job creation for women and young people with particular emphasis on digital skills. It will support the creation of a new computer science institute attached to the University of Burundi in partnership with world-renowned universities, said the minister in charge of education.
As for the criteria for choosing the vocational schools and trades education that will benefit from the support of that project which will be implemented over a period of five years, Minister Havyarimana replied that 100 vocational training schools will be targeted. teaching of trades distributed in the provinces of the country according to regional potential. Other vocational schools will benefit from the support of the government, which has already taken initiatives to promote those schools throughout the national territory.