The government is in the process of recognizing artisans in the informal (Jua Kali) sector by issuing them certificates as part of a wider plan to align skills development with industry.
Assessors from different technical training institutions will be tasked with assessing the skills in the informal sector in order to issue the craftsmen with certificates that will be of use during the government’s proposed labour migration programme.
This was revealed by the Principal Secretary (PS) in the State Department for Labour and Skills Development Shadrack Mwadime on Monday.
Mwadime, who was speaking during the opening of a five-day joint peer- learning capacity building workshop on sector skills at a Machakos hotel, said 19 million Kenyans engaged in the Jua Kali sector have experience, but the greatest challenge that they face is lack of certificates for the skills they possess.
“That is the reason why the government decided to come up with a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) policy so that we can send out our assessors from the different technical training institutes in the country to assess the skills that Kenyans in the informal sector have and give them certificates,” said the PS.
He said one of the objectives of the initiative is to address unemployment as the beneficiaries will be able to capitalize on the opportunities open in European and Western countries to go and acquire more skills.
The certified artisans will also be encouraged to establish enterprises and produce goods that can compete with those from developed countries.
“By involving industry, we will ensure education and training is aligned to the needs of the changing world,” said Mwadime.
Samson Opaluwah, Chairman of the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria, led a delegation of Nigerians to the peer-learning workshop.
“We have come to share our experiences. Africa has a challenge of informal sector that is not regulated and there’s need to have the sector players certified and registered. If we organize them well we will be able to support them,” said Opaluwah.
The discussions centered on the role of quality assurance bodies in accreditation of RPL assessment centres in Kenya, role of Qualifications Awarding Institutions (QAIs) in the implementation of RPL in education/ TVET sector in Kenya, and role of workers and employers’ organizations in the implementation of RPL and skill development, among other thematic areas.
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