Vocational training interventions need a credible approach for identifying skills gaps in the labor market. A key part of the Vocational Training Activity’s program logic involved shifting the Namibian vocational training sector from being supply driven to one that was driven by the needs of the labor market. The high unemployment rate among COSDEC graduates a year after they completed training suggests the need for a more effective process to align course offerings at the COSDECs with market demand; the evaluation of another sub-activity yielded a similar finding. Assessing market demand at a project level might include diagnostics of labor market trends and specific hiring challenges of key industries as well as an assessment of the feasibility and cost effectiveness of supporting target populations to achieve the skills and experience profiles necessary to be hired into said positions. Further, at the provider level, vocational training providers can draw on broader national studies of market demand and also engage with local employers, going beyond arranging job attachments or internships.
Lesson Learned