On March 29^th, 2019 in Hanoi, the Directorate of Vocational Education and Training (DVET) of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) called for its first development partners meeting in 2019. Co-hosted by DVET and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für International Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, with technical supports from the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the meeting aimed to update on recent developments in TVET in Viet Nam in general and to receive inputs for the amendment of TVET-related contents in the Labour Code 2012. Nearly 40 TVET experts and practitioners participated in the meeting, including representatives from the Danish Embassy, Australian Embassy (DFAT), Lux Development (LuxDev), the World Bank (WB), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Norwegian Employer’s Association, Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), the legal department of MoLISA and various DVET departments.

This event is “a great opportunity offered by DVET to provide inputs to such an important legal document closely linked to the TVET sector due to its specific focus on vocational education and occupational skills development in enterprises”, Mr Martin Hoppe, the First Counsellor of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany stated in his opening remarks. Confirming the necessity of joining efforts and resources, Ms Valentina Barcucci, the Deputy Director of the ILO Hanoi office also expressed her appreciation for the fruitful cooperation with DVET and GIZ in the organisation of this meeting.

Presentations and discussions focused on models and effective mechanisms from Germany, Denmark and other countries engaging the business sector in TVET. Good practices presented at the meeting illustrated that various projects and programmes implemented with DVET in Viet Nam often share common objectives, namely to contribute to the development of a sound and coherent demand-oriented TVET system and to strengthen the engagement of the business sector.

Dr Truong Anh Dung Dung, the Deputy General Director of DVET confirmed that there is not any “ready-made” model for Viet Nam or any other country. He appreciated all the valuable inputs and experiences from development partners. Furthermore, he particularly valued the advice to clearly define terms and concepts, including apprenticeship, school-based apprenticeship, traineeship and internship, institutionalising cooperative training that requires qualified in-company trainers as well as institutionalised bodies like sector skills councils or industry advisory boards. As a next step, DVET will further study these concepts and ideas to propose them to the revision committee chaired by MoLISA.

Concluding the meeting, Dr Dung urged for continuing support of development partners to further develop and enhance the efficiency of the TVET system of Viet Nam.