Vocational Education and Training in Southern Africa

Vocational Education and Training in Southern Africa A Comparative Study Edited by Salim Akoojee, Anthony Gewer and Simon McGrath HSRC RESEARCH MONOGRAPH RESEARCH PROGRAMME ON HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Compiled by the Research Programme on Human Resources Development, Human Sciences Research Council Published by HSRC Press Private Bag X9182, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa www.hsrcpress.ac.za © 2005 Human Sciences Research Council, in this version First published 2005 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. ISBN 0-7969-2043-5 Cover by Fuel Design Copy editing by Laurie Rose-Innes Typeset by Christabel Hardacre Print management by comPress Distributed in Africa by Blue Weaver Marketing and Distribution PO Box 30370, Tokai, Cape Town, 7966, South Africa Tel: +27 +21 701-4477 Fax: +27 +21 701-7302 email: orders@blueweaver.co.za Distributed worldwide, except Africa, by Independent Publishers Group 814 North Franklin Street, Chicago, IL 60610, USA www.ipgbook.com To order, call toll-free: 1-800-888-4741 All other inquiries, Tel: +1 +312-337-0747 Fax: +1 +312-337-5985 email: Frontdesk@ipgbook.com Contents List of tables and figures vi Acknowledgements vii Abbreviations viii 1. The multiple context of vocational education and training in southern Africa Simon McGrath 1 Introduction 1 The historical legacy 1 International influences 2 This study 6 2. Botswana: united in purpose, diverse in practice Salim Akoojee 9 Introduction 9 The socio-political, economic and development context 9 The educational context 15 The TVET system 17 Recent developments 22 Conclusion 29 3. Lesotho: the uphill journey to development Thomas Magau 32 Contextual realities 32 The educational context 34 The VET system 36 Conclusion 44 4. Mauritius: ‘the Singapore of Africa’? Skills for a global island Anthony Gewer 46 The country context 46 The educational context 49 The VET system 54 Summary and conclusions 63 5. Mozambique: towards rehabilitation and transformation Nimrod Mbele 65 Introduction 65 The country context 65 The educational context 68 The TVET system 71 Key issues in Mozambican TVET 74 Conclusion 79 6. Namibia: repositioning vocational education and training Mahlubi Mabizela 81 Introduction 81 Locating Namibia 81 The education system 84 The VET system 85 Current vision and changes in the VET system 95 Conclusion 98 7. South Africa: skills development as a tool for social and economic development Salim Akoojee, Anthony Gewer and Simon McGrath 99 Introduction 99 Setting the scene: economic and development contexts 99 The educational context 103 The unfinished business of building a new integrated VET system 106 Attempts to strengthen the integration of education and training 112 A decade on: assessing and explaining successes and failures 115 8. The Kingdom of Swaziland: escaping the colonial legacy Jennifer Roberts 118 Introduction 118 The social and economic context 118 The Swaziland education system 123 VET in Swaziland 126 Emerging policy issues and directions 137 9. Key issues and challenges for transformation Simon McGrath 139 Understanding the extent and limits of regional convergence in VET policy 139 A vision for VET? 140 VET and the bigger policy picture 142 The VET debates 144 Conclusion 151 References 152 v ©HSRC 2005 ... - tailieumienphi.vn