Apprenticeship

in low- and middle-income countries:

Ways for development
CEDEFOP Workshop
Apprenticeship: Governance modes and financing approaches
Thessaloniki, 20-21 May 2013
Helmut Zelloth (ETF)
Senior Specialist in VET Policies and Systems

EU neighbouring countries (31)

ETF partner countries

Candidate countries to EU (6):

Croatia, Turkey, former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro,
Iceland, Serbia

South Eastern
Europe (3): Albania,
Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Kosovo
Mediterranean
region (10):
Algeria, Egypt,
Israel, Jordan,
Lebanon, Libya,
Morocco,
Palestine, Syria,
Tunisia

Eastern Europe (7) : Armenia,

Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia,
Moldova, Russian Federation,
Ukraine

EU Member States

Central Asia (5):

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan

WBL and AP on the rise

Restults from a questionnaire-based survey
in EU neighbouring countries (ETF 2012)

UWARD trend

WBL will grow in

next 5 years

DOWNWARD trend

WBL will become

less important in
next 5 years

19 (Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon,

Israel, Morocco, Serbia,
Montenegro, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Kosovo*, former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,
Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Armenia,
Georgia, Azerbaijan, Moldova,
Tajikistan)
0 none

Did you know, that in LMICs

Informal apprenticeships exist (i.e.

widespread in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America)
as a traditional and important source of skills
development in the informal economy

while formal apprenticeships and other forms of workbased learning are still under-represented and
struggling to get established

Development stages
of formal apprenticeship differ by country

Well established apprenticeship systems (i.e. Turkey, Ukraine,

Croatia, Algeria, Morocco, Jordan)

Long-established apprenticeship programmes (i.e. Egypt,

Israel)

Recent pilots on apprenticeship (i.e. Syria, Lebanon, Palestine,

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Kazakhstan)

Not at all apprenticeship (i.e. Serbia, Moldova, Taijkistan, Turkmenistan)

Type of AP

Main challenge

Informal AP

Upgrade and formalising

No AP at all

To get started - how?

Recent pilots

Integration in VET system and

scaling up

Long established

Growth and expansion

Well established

Quality

Other challenges
(ETF study on Middle East ad
North Africa, 2009)

Traditional manual trades and blue collar

seem to dominate (mainly bigger industry, crafts)

Limited impact upon service sector, white

collar, higher skill and qualification levels

- Algeria a major exception (ICT, higher level qualifications)
- Egypt to a lesser extent (business, hospitality)
- Syria (telecommunications, nursing)

Nearly 30 formal programmes were identified

Structures differ a lot
- Duration, period in workplace, curriculum etc.
- Titles are a poor indicator of key features
(Apprenticeship for example)

Some examples of
programme structures
Months
Programme
ALG

Apprenticeship

EGY

PVTD

EGY

MOE

EGY

MKI

ISR

Apprenticeship

JOR

Applied Secondary Education

LEB

Dual system - apprenticeship

MOR

Alternance

MOR

Apprenticeship

SYR

Apprenticeship

TUR

Apprenticeship

TUR

Internship

WBG

GTZ apprenticeship

WBG

Luterhan Training Centre

Key:

1-6

Institution

7-12

Alternating

12-18

Workplace

19-24

25-30

31-36

Integrated or segmented
model ?

Model 1

Model 2

Model 3

Integrated

Vertically
segmented

Vertically and
horizontally
segmented

Key:

General

Institution-based vocational

Work-based vocational

LEBANON
Attempt to better meeting LM demand

VET system outcome

Managers

Private sector not

directly involved in
the vocational
training

Foremen
technicians

Skilled workers
Labor market needs
Source: GIZ 2010

Public sector builds

the training on
education basis;
focus : higher
education certificates

Managers

Foremen
technicians

Skilled
Workers

Lebanon
Recent pilot

Dual system introduced 15 years ago, became

popular but remains small-scale (1,600 apprentices)

Legal status achieved / Vocational secondary

education certificate only few occupational areas

Individual company approach as role of Employer

organisations in VET is still weak but developing

No financial incentives to companies and students

Meister training latest initiative opening path for

higher positions (industrial mechanics, car
mechatronics), 2 year course, 2-5 years experience

KAZAKHSTAN
Cooperative VET
Recent pilot

New Initial VET pathway piloted by EU

project (Cooperative VET)
- very recent initiative with enterprise involvement,
training centres in enterprises
- 50-60% practice orientation (both school and
enterprise), out of which up to 70% in enterprises in
technical VET fields, up to 40% in economy and
administration, 25-30% in humanitarian VET areas
- amendment of Education Law made in 2011 which
included Cooperative VET as a new VET pathway

ALBANIA
FASTIP
Recent pilot

Post-secondary (tertiary) VET level

three-year managment program in three
branches (banking, torism and SME management,
pilot project 2008-2012)
- alternating mode (cycles of 3 month classroom
learning followed by learning in the workplace)
- 180 credits (ECTS), awarded Bachelor
- companies involved highly satisfied, job
prospects for students promising
- some teething problems, initiative still an Alien
in the VET scene

EGYPT
Long-established

Different schemes (different ministries, private

sector) but no unified system / national framework

Mubarak-Kohl Initiative (MKI) modelled on

German dual system (since 1996, annually
15,000 participants, 0.6% of VET) became
recognised secondary education programme
(50% went on to HE)

Key role of Egyptian Investors Association

MKI managed by RUDS Regional Units of

Dual System (i.e. selection trainees)

Intermediary body (Example of Federation of

Construction and Building Contractors in Egypt
contracting out to employers)

TURKEY
Well-established

Long tradition (13th century, Ahi system)

Legal basis (since 1970s, Apprenticeship / VET Law,

boom from 20,000 to 200,000 participants, 1990-2010)

Financing arrangements insurance of apprentices

and payment of least 30% of minimum wage

Strong employer involvement (TESK Chambers

and Sector Federations 2 mio. members trades- and
craftsmen

Strong partnership enterprises + VTCs

Workplace investigation and consultancy

(Monitoring and Consulting Groups)

MoNE apprenticeships + TESK apprenticeships in

occuptational branches where MoNE does not offer

Apprentice Journeyman Master levels

Morocco
Algeria
Well-established
Financing apprenticeship

- combination of training wages, targeted public subsidies

and an apprenticeship tax (Algeria)
- encouragig businesses accident / health insurance
covered; allowances excempted from training levy and
income tax (Morocco)
Ambitious policy initiatives to expand

apprenticeship
Morocco: had 4,000 apprentices in 1999 and 30,000 in
2004; ambitious policy goal to reach 60,000 participants
by 2015 (at present mainly low-level qualifications, 1-2
years)
- Algeria: to change the balance in VET from 30% in
apprenticeship to 70%

Ways
for
development

Anything goes?

 or mission impossible ?

Possible ?

to identify

Apprentice-able countries

Factors / systemic constituencies

that must be in place
Translate into practical self
assessment tool ?

Step by step
Economy, labour market
Education-VET system
Socio-cultural
Training culture
Part of innovation
Demand Potential
Specific labour market &
learning needs
Awareness raising /
capacity building
Political dialogue
Alliances / Framework
Support and incentives

Context specific
Employer- or state-driven,
Intermediary bodies

Consider CONTEXT seriously

Do RESEARCH incl. sector needs

analysis, feasibility studies

Get EMPLOYERS / SOCIAL

PARTNERS commitment and true
partnership
Make a proper INSTITUTIONAL

set-up

Step by step
Access to higher skills
levels/white collar - VET
/ education
Attractive pathway
Avoiding stigmatisation
Avoid distortions
Deadweight effects

Promotion campaign for

VET, occupations

Eye-opening and change

agent function
Transitioning

Create an open ARCHITECTURE

Careful with INCENTIVES

Dont forget to PROMOTE

Introduce CAREER GUIDANCE prior

to VET

Tools to develop
apprenticeship
Legislation
(plus resource allocation)

Make clever use of funds

Pilot projects

(Range of EU funds, other donors )

(M & E, up-scaling)

Apprenticeship

Learn from failures

as well
(not only success factors)

Timing / Patience
(tends to last much longer
than expected / longer than
cycle of elections)

We need them:
They need us

Morocco, Casablanca
ETF 2009

In any case,
and hopefully soon
Welcome to visit the ETF
and the city of Turin (Italy) !