On the 02.10.2014, the Workshop on “Vocational training for the Wastewater Sector in Viet Nam – Achieved Results and Next Steps’’ took place in Hanoi.

In his speech, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Cao Van Sam, Deputy Director General of General Directorate for Vocational Training, appreciated the support of the German Government for establishing the new vocational training programme on “Sewege Engineering Technician” in cooperation with Viet Nam. He expressed that the achieved results of programme will lead to significant improvement for the wastewater sector in the future.

Implemented from 2013, “Vocational training for the Wastewater Sector in Viet Nam’’, a component of the German-Vietnamese “Programme Reform of TVET in Viet Nam” established by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) aims at supporting the Vietnamese government in the provision of demand-oriented training, increasing the qualified labour force for the wastewater sector.

Summarising the achieved results of Programme Component “Vocational training for wastewater sector in Viet Nam’’, Mrs. Phan Hoang Mai, team leader , explains that the project supports the Ho Chi Minh Vocational College of Technology, the Vietnam Water Supply and Sewerage Association as well as sewage companies in formulating a set of occupational standards for the training of “Sewage Engineering Technician”. This set of standards comprises criteria defining the quality and the expected outcomes of the training and ensures that graduates satisfy the requirements of the occupation.

Based on the developed occupational standard, the project developed training modules for a 3-years technical vocational training programme for “Sewage Engineering Technician” at college level. The program includes theoretical and practical training modules, which will be taught both in vocational schools and in enterprises.

Another achieved result is the improvements of skills of teachers from technical colleges and trainers in sewage companies. By accessing the professional ability and the practical skills of teachers and trainers in the wastewater sector, the project gives a road map for increasing the professional ability and the practical skill of teachers and trainers in order to achieve the required level of knowledge as well pedagogical competence for the pilot training courses. The teachers and trainers also play a multiplier role; they will train their colleagues at their technical college or company.

At the workshop, representatives of sewerage companies participating in the training programme “Sewage Engineering Technician” also confirmed the essential demand of a qualified labour force for enterprises andcommited to suppot the project in the next phase ( 2015-2017).