Within the framework of the Vietnamese- German “Programme Reform of TVET in Vietnam”, 11 partner colleges have been supported to implement the German standard oriented and labour market-driven Cooperative training concept. To achieve the goal, the Industry Advisory Boards (IABs) have been established and operated for supported occupations at 11 colleges with the participation of the business sector, representatives of students, teachers, and relevant authorities.

With the aim of strengthening effective and substantial cooperation between colleges and enterprises participating in the Industry Advisory Boards, on March 17, 2021, the “Technical Exchange Workshop on Establishment and Operation of Industry Advisory Boards” took place at the Ninh Thuan Vocational College.  Approximately 60 delegates including rector boards, teachers, and partner companies of 11 partner colleges of the Programme “Reform of TVET in Vietnam”-GIZ, representatives of Ninh Thuan Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, together with GIZ’s experts and staff attended the workshop.

In the workshop, Dr. Juergen Hartwig, the Director of the Programme “Reform of TVET in Vietnam”, gave a presentation on the core criteria of the German Dual TVET system, positions and roles of stakeholders and recommendations to reform the TVET management in Vietnam. In addition, delegates also had a chance to approach to the current situation of college – based IAB activities through a preliminary survey report. They were also introduced to several tools to successfully implement the establishment and implementation of IABs’ activities. “The Industry Advisory Boards is an important tool for business to deeply and substantially participate in the development and implementation of training programmes, assessing outcome skills and jobs for trainees. Only when the enterprises are in the driver’s seat, can the operation of the Industry Advisory Boards be effective and substantial”, he emphasized.

In the welcome speech, Mr. Nguyen Phan Anh Quoc- the Rector of Ninh Thuan Vocational College stated: “The workshop is an opportunity for the college-based IABs to share their operational experiences, to look back the achievements in the past few years and to set objectives need to be reached in the coming time”.

The delegates were divided into two groups working in parallel which are representatives from enterprises and representatives from TVET institutes to discuss the roles of stakeholders in the Industry Advisory Boards, difficulties, challenges and finding solutions to operate the IABs effectively in the coming years, following with the session of 11 colleges and its partner enterprises to develop the activity plans of IABs for 2021 for each college.

Dr. Nguyen Xuan Nhan- the Director of Minh Phu Aquatic Breeds Production Company-shared his thought after the workshop:” We are committed to the cooperation with the college, organizing apprenticeship and offering job opportunities for trainees. Currently, our company has a policy that students get an allowance during apprenticeship. By TVET system at college supported by the Programme “Reform of TVET in Vietnam”, fresh graduates can be able to work immediately at enterprises”.

This activity was held within the component “Supporting High-Quality TVET Institutes” as part of the Vietnamese – German “Programme Reform of TVET in Vietnam”. The programme is financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) together with the Vietnamese Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA).