Nairobi: TVET central to Ghana’s education reforms – Dr. Apaak

Deputy Minister for Education, Dr. Clement Abas Apaak, has emphasized that technical and vocational education must be prioritized if Ghana is to achieve meaningful educational reforms.

Speaking during the Ministerial Panel at Africa Skills for Jobs Policy Academy in Nairobi, Kenya, Dr. Apaak explained that Ghana’s economic turnaround now provides the opportunity to advance reforms that will empower private sector participation and create sustainable jobs.

The Africa Skills for Jobs Policy Academy is being held in Nairobi, Kenya, from September 30 to October 3, 2025, bringing together policymakers, experts, and private sector representatives to foster collaborative learning and develop reforms for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) across Sub-Saharan Africa.

The event, organized by the World Bank in partnership with the Government of Kenya and the Inter-University Council for East Africa, the academy aims to address youth unemployment by aligning training programs with labor market needs and promoting upskilling in key sectors.

Ghana’s Deputy Minister for Education disclosed that Ghana’s improved finances have afforded the government the opportunity to explore ways of improving education in the country.

“The Ghanaian cedi has become one of the strongest-performing currencies. This also now gives us room to be able to be innovative in granting more opportunities for private entities to function. But how are we going to do this without educational reforms? And the reforms must be in the area of technical and vocational education,” he said.

Dr. Apaak further revealed that the government had initiated the National Forum on Education to gather input from Ghanaians on how best to reposition the country’s education system to support national development.

“As I speak to you now, our government initiated the National Forum on Education to solicit ideas from all walks of life in Ghana about what we needed to do to reposition Ghanaian education, to make it more meaningful, and to support our quest to thrive,” he noted.

According to him, the findings of the forum confirmed that investment in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is the most effective pathway for equipping the youth with skills relevant to the job market.

“In fact, our Minister for Education has recently made it his point of call to advocate for our government to consider ceding about two percent of our oil revenue to finance technical and vocational education,” Dr. Apaak added.

He stressed that without a deliberate focus on TVET, Ghana risks limiting its progress in developing a workforce capable of driving innovation and competitiveness in the global economy.

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Dr. Apaak urged his fellow attendees not to treat TVET as a second fiddle to regular school, noting that it was an opportunity to equip students with employable skills by the time they pass out.

“There is this tendency to believe that it is students who are less competent academically who are to take up technical, vocational education and training,” he said.

He said the Mahama administration had set in motion plans to scale up TVET facilities in order that learners can fully benefit.