Skills Development: Vocational Education
in the Islamic Countries
134
THEME 1: Eradicationof poverty viavocational education
Through entrepreneurship skills: TVET is considered as a means of equipping studentswith
self-employment skills in Uganda. When a student is trainedwith skills he does not only acquire
skills but also he/she turns out to be self-employed there by creating jobs for others. This was
highlighted as a good strategywithwhich the acquired skills, throughvocational training, helped
to alleviate poverty:
“some of the graduates go and get employed others get involved in self-employment and this
create jobs for others they also actually create jobs through providing jobs for others and
also generating products which other people can sell which they can sell to other people and
such away we can get some income and thereby reducing unemployment.”(P4Ug)
“these students they go out there, they make their own garments, they employ themselves,
they even employ others and I think it is a contribution although it is at lower level but it is
a contribution.”(P6Ug)
“youth having been trained and they have the skills they would create employment , now
as they create employment they will stop from going to look for employment and they start
their small business in there they are going to recruit other youth who are mere helpers who
in long run be trained with in the scope of the business , so in so doing that we are reducing
the population from the (for example) if we had 1000 students or youth the other side and
one or two are skilled in which ever skilleddisciplines then you can find that this one persons
who can go with about 20 untrained ones that is the way of reducing the population of
unemployed youths to the improve the economy of the country because in here we level the
taxes ,which taxes help us in other developmental things within the country.”(P5Ug)
Provision of hostel facilities: Most TVET institutions have provision of hostel that is to attract
people from rural areaswho find it difficult to travel to and fro the institution. Thus, this
subsidised hostel fee attract the poor to join institutions in the long run. Participants have
highlighted this that:
“Kampala, but we have hostel facilities, there are people who came from far away come and
reside in Kampala and study with us and at affordable rate.”(P6Ug)
Poverty alleviation: Vocational institutions have been considered as a basis for reducing the
poverty levels inmost of the countries, more particularly in Uganda. They have been helping the
country through skill training to reduce on the number of unemployment and thus redu cing
poverty. Participants have highlighted this:
“you should know that there were demographic reports of population and that at least by
2030 or 2050 Africa is going to create jobs for over 700 youths but right now basing on our
capacity now we afford only 30% of that so one of the way is to train these people at X
institute we run a normal program that all our student should learn skills like making soap
(bar and liquid soap), books, shoes…” (P1Ug)
Bursary and scholarship : In order to alleviate poverty in Uganda, vocational institutions have
offered some considerable discounts for students who came from poor backgrounds as a form
of attracting them towards attaining skill training. Participants have highlighted this: