After independence in 1961, the Government
inherited two Trade Schools operated by the Ministry of Education. These
were Ifunda & Moshi Technical Schools. The schools ran a three-year
training programme for youth who had completed primary school education
and the curriculum was broad in the first year with subsequent
specialization during the second and third years. A period of two years
indentured apprenticeship scheme was Songeaed to follow the school based
training. Apprenticeship training was based on a 1940 ordinance; Cap.81
of the Laws. The schools were initially established to fill a real need
because the country had neither the industrial network nor the skilled
workers who could train others on the job. But while the curriculum
placed great emphasis on workshop practice, the schools were at the same
time conforming to the requirements of the education system instead of
the industry system
Establishment of Chang'ombe Vocational Training Centre
In 1969 a Vocational Training Centre was established at Chang'ombe in
Dar es Salaam. This was the first centre to conduct Vocational Education
and Training in Tanzania. The people who were trained were army
soldiers and workers from Ministry of Works.
Then slowly candidates who had completed standard seven (primary school
leavers) started to join such training. The Instructors at first were
members of the military force and few civilians, Mr Ahmed Athuman, the
Advisor to VETA management was one of the Instructors. As time went on,
candidates who performed well started to be retained as Instructors. The
centre started with three trades namely: Motor Vehicle Mechanics - with
29 candidates, fitter Mechanics - with 9 candidates, and Carpentry and
Joinery - with 8 candidates.
Establishment of NVTD
In 1974 the first Vocational Training Act was enacted to replace the
Apprenticeship Ordinance followed by the establishment of the National Vocational
Training Division (NVTD) in September 1975 within the Ministry of Labour and Manpower
Development. The late Morgan H. Manyangawas appointed as Director of NVTD. Under the
1974 Vocational Training Act a National Vocational Council was established, with itsmain
function being to ensure the existence of adequate supply of properly trained manpower
at all levels in industry as well as to secure the greatest possible improvement in the
quality and efficiency of vocational training in the country.
In 1974 NVTD started with ten Trades namely: Motor Vehicle Mechanics,
Fitter Mechanics, Carpentry and Joinery,
Electrical Installation, Masonry and
Bricklaying, Plumbing, Welding and fabrication,
Painting and Decorating, Tailoring and
Shoe Making with a total number of 258 candidates.
Mr. Ahmed Athuman who was the Assistant
Director for Planning was given a role of leading
a planning section in that Division.
The training system which emerged was dual in that training
was divided into two parts. The first
part was based on one or two years of institutional basic
trainingfollowed by two to three
years of apprenticeship training in industry.
In its 20 years of existence
(from 1974 — 1994), the National Vocational Training Division
established 18 Vocational Training Centres (non for Lindi and Kigoma
regions) and one Vocational Teachers Training College (MVTTC at Morogoro
region).
Mr. E. Ngowi who was the Assistant Director for Training was given a
role of developing and implementing training system. A total of 34
trades were offered to equip young men and women with basic employable
skills before they joined organizations in various sectors of the
national economy. NVTD offered Trade Testing grade III, II and I, grade
one being the highest.
Religious Trade Schools
Mission Trade Schools started operations in Tanzania during the colonial
period and offered training in common skills such as carpentry,
tailoring, bricklaying and shoemaking. Most trainees were and still are
found in carpentry, tailoring, motor vehicle mechanics, masonry and
plumbing. Courses are of three to four years duration and the training
programmes are built in training cum production in order to recover some
of the training expenses as well as expose the trainees to the
realities of working life. Through their church affiliation, some
receive assistance from mission organizations/churches in Europe or
North America. One of the strengths of these schools is that they have a
strong local base through parish and diocese organizations. They also
have schemes which other centres seek to develop (production units).
Private Vocational Training Centres:
Private Vocational Training Centres concentrate mainly on "soft skills"
such as secretarial, computer courses, commercial and catering/hotel
services. Traditional blue collar trades, which require expensive
training infrastructures, are not found in the majority of these centres
due to cost.
Company based Vocational Training Centres.
Company based vocational training centres are mainly found in the bigger
companies and parastatal enterprises. Training offered is demand driven
and is narrowed to the ultimate skills competence needed for production
and services. With the decline of the parastatal sector, most company
based Vocational Training Centres are now closed.
Post Primary Technical Training Centres.
The Post Primary Technical Training Centres are under the Ministry of
Education and were established mainly to impart basic skills to primary
school leavers to enable them contribute to development of the villages
which were established during the villagization move in the 1970's. The
training workshops are located in the Primary Schools and the centres
have a serious capacity utilization problem due to lack of credibility
caused mainly by the high recurrent costs.
Folk Development Colleges
The Folk Development Colleges (FDCs) were established as institutions
for training rural people for useful service to their communities. The
origin of the FDCs can be traced back to the adult education programmes
introduced after Independence and based on the Swedish Folk High School
model. They were planned to constitute the third stage of adult
education by offering literacy as well as vocational skills. The
curriculum is however Songeaed centrally and this prevents any
significant autonomy for the FDCs to adapt to the needs of their local
communities. In recent years the Colleges have introduced courses that
lead to trade tests. Although traditionally trade tests are the key to
formal sector employment, their introduction in the FDCs is believed to
strengthen the level of skills in the respective rural areas.
The Changing Macro Policy Setting
Tanzania has persistently stressed that socio-economic development is
meaningful if it takes care of the needs and expectations of the
ordinary man in society. The policy has therefore been to combat
poverty, ignorance and disease. However, for a long time now, and
especially from the 1970s the country has experienced serious economic
problems arising from both internal and external forces. In order to
tackle them government has had to review its policies and plans, going
all the way back to the 1960s. The reviews have brought about changes
influenced very much also by those taking place globally. These changes
have received expression in the new policy, which provides for:-
Increased role of the private sector, thereby broadening the
participation base in the economy.
Continued liberalization of trade and other systems
Allocation of essential resources to priority areas
Increased investment in infrastructure and social development sectors,
especially health and education (including Vocational Education).
Reduction of subsidies and the introduction of cost recovery and cost
sharing measures where applicable.
Effects on VET provision
Parallel to the changing socio-economic situation, the vocational
training system has also had to change. The Government was no longer the
major employer; the parastatal sector, which was the main employer of
apprentices, is being privatized. Under the circumstances, major reviews
were undertaken from 1986 to 1990 in order to find out how the
vocational training system could be adjusted to meet the needs of the
new environment. The main findings of the reviews revealed weaknesses
some of which were that:-
The training centres operated in isolation from the industry they were
supposed to serve.
The National Vocational Training Council did not assert itself as a
forum for policy dialogue and system development.
The apprenticeship training system based on a four year cycle was not
working well. The trade testing system, which was supposed to serve both
apprentices and external candidates, experienced high failure rates.
Centralized vocational education and training management had created a
stiff and unresponsive system and development of regional initiative was
not encouraged.
Inadequate funds from the Government for both capital and recurrent
expenditure had created uneven development of training infrastructure.
Curriculum development was not in harmony with demands of the labour
market.
Foreseeable future Government appropriations for recurrent costs
precluded sustained quality standards of training in existing system,
let alone planned system expansions:-
The new VET system.
In order to remove these weaknesses of the VET system as it existed
then, and, also to bring the system into the service of a changed
socio-economic outlook, the following recommendations were made:
Overall authority for vocational education and training should reside in
an independent Vocational Education and Training Board, with broader
powers and wider terms of reference than the former National Vocational
Training Council which it has replaced. Its main responsibility is; to
ensure that the vocational education and training system meets the needs
of the nation, to develop policies for the training system as a whole
and supervise their implementation, to ensure a user-responsive
efficient and quality conscious decentralized vocational training system
that also gives due weight to equality issues particularly in relation
to females and disadvantaged groups.
A Vocational Education and Training Authority (VETA) supervised by the
Board be established to assume day-to-day operational responsibility for
the implementation of the Boards policies. The Board appoints the
Director General to whom it delegates authority for the daily operation
of the office.
The cost of the new system is to be met from the vocational training
levy to be earmarked for training activities falling within the domain
of VETA. The VET levy has been broadened to cover total payroll of firms
in the non Government sector of the economy. The focus of training
policies be regionalized. Regional Boards be established to coordinate
Vocational Training in the regions. The Boards oversee training
provision in the regions as a whole and also serve as the governing body
of all VTCs in the region. Regional Boards also should prepare regional
budgets for approval by the National Board and funded by the Training
Fund. Budgets should cover the recurrent costs of VTCs in the regions
including training grants to other training institutions according to
priorities and criteria approved by the Board
The 1994 Vocational Education and Training Act.
The Act, passed by the National Assembly in 1994 and effective from
1995, resulted from the broad policy frame work summarized above. It
seeks to improve the provisions of vocational education and training
through new legislation as well as changes in the structure and
administrative style. Central to the Act is the establishment of VETA,
financed through a training payroll levy and supervised by the
Vocational Education and Training Board.
Status as from 1995
New and renovated Centres
Mbeya, Iringa, Kigoma, Mtwara, Dar es Salaam renovated
Vocational Centres rehabilitation
Songea VTC New Centre, Mara rehabilitated, Kagera, Arusha Oljoro, Mikumi
In pipeline Construction and rehabilitation
Arusha Tourism and Hotel management, Singida, Kibaha, Manyara and Lindi -Mpanda, Ulyankulu, Shinyanga, Dakawa and Tabora RVTSC.
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