CEO
What is the prime objective of each learner to go to school? Of course, it incorporates confirmed belief of acquiring a quality education that enables him/her to learn good things to become a responsible citizen of the country. However, in order to participate in community services, each learner requires vocational or technical education which ushers their feeling to become socially responsible citizens as they need to interact with many people around.
We arguably believe that vocational or technical education bestows on learners different skills and abilities to cope with unprecedented challenges. And such efforts can be galvanized by interacting with people with various issues who are looking for immediate solutions. Therefore, the dire need of vocational education cannot be overlooked nor can it be expunged as a fundamental right of human beings since it carries a supreme power to bring rapid transformation in the society.
In the context of Nepal, technical or vocational education is considered to be more beneficial and relevant than formal or theoretical education. That is to say, technical or vocational education is life-enhancing whereas theoretical education is not. Therefore, it is less relevant than hands-on education which can be acquired through practice. Needless to say, because of lack of adequate vocational and skill-based education, the unemployment rate in Nepal is ever persisting in the course of time.
It is a common practice for any country to provide education in line with need and demand of the changing time. In addition, mediocrity in life-skill, lack of awareness and orientation on an appropriate job and inadequate information and counseling are the fountainhead of growing unemployment rate in Nepal. Therefore, a full concentration on theoretical education is likely to produce academic graduates who spend their life-time dilly-dallying in search of a proper job. In this regard, we need an education model that stimulates economic growth and leads each learner to the path of self-reliance. Obviously, technical education upgrades an individual’s skills and supports each and every individual, society and the entire nation to move ahead in the path of autonomy and entrepreneurship. When the entire world is advocating the essence of life-enhancing skills for each learner, setting priorities for pedantic education eventually leads the graduates to reside in limbo with empty hands and void minds. Hence, vocational education should be accessible to all people so that they can ensure their sustainability without getting involved in a menial job in a foreign land.
The Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) has a crucial role to play in producing such skilled and job-oriented workforce for the country. It is undoubtedly imparting technical education and vocational training to prepare medium or semi-skilled manpower in the country. This institution conducts short and long-term training programs in different technical fields, such as health assistance, junior agriculture and veterinary science assistance, pharmacy, lab technicians, electrics, mechanics, plumbing, computing and hotel industry, based on the syllabi it has designed. However, liability of the CTEVT has, on some occasions, been an issue of public backlash for failing to produce competent and skilled workforce. So, it is an urgent need of the CTEVT to redeem its lost legacy.
According to a recent study, every year, 300,000-400,000 youths enter the labor market worldwide. And at the same time, an annual ratio of unemployment is increasing at the rate of 4 percent in the country which will obviously invite further socio-economic problems to the country. So, it is necessary for the government to expand technical and vocational education to remote and geographically wrenched areas of the country so that we can curb the widely existing problems of poverty and unemployment. At the same time, it has also been realized that the specific rules and regulations must be enforced to impart basic-skill training under a single umbrella to the laborers who are obliged to be expats in Gulf and other countries where physical toil and labor is given much importance. However, due to lack of proper skills and training, Nepali workers are trolling with no options of employment, and finally they are prone to menial work which is easily available abroad.
In conclusion, technical and vocational education is highly significant and relevant for a poor and economically backward countries like Nepal. Indeed, it is technical and vocational education that can make significant contributions to usher the country to autonomy.
