Uganda is overhauling its technical and vocational education system to put practical skills, industry needs and employability ahead of the traditional emphasis on academic qualifications and certificates.
The reforms include 17 new National Technician Diploma curricula approved by the TVET Council and ready for implementation, covering mechanical, electrical, civil engineering and ICT fields.
TVET Council Executive Director Moses Kasakya said yesterday the changes are intended to reposition vocational education as a key driver of industrialisation, employment, productivity and economic transformation.
“TVET is no longer being treated simply as an alternative route for people who do not pursue academic education,” Mr Kasakya said.
He said the central question for employers should increasingly be what a graduate can actually do, rather than what the person studied.
The new programmes include welding and fabrication, mechanical and manufacturing technology, air conditioning and refrigeration, heavy and light automobile technology, electrical and electronics technology, mechatronics, telecommunications and electronics.
Others cover roads and bridges construction, water and irrigation, building construction, architecture, cyber security and digital forensics, computer networking, software development, data science and analytics, and multimedia production and motion design.
Industry to shape training
Under the reforms, employers will have a bigger say in determining the skills taught in training institutions.
The Council has established 10 Sector Skills Expert Committees to provide information on labour-market demands and advise on the skills required in key sectors of the economy.
The committees will influence the programmes introduced, curricula revised and areas prioritised for investment.
The arrangement is intended to ensure training institutions produce graduates whose skills match workplace demands.
Qualifications get new pathway
The reforms also introduce the Uganda TVET Qualifications Framework, which will provide a structured pathway showing available qualifications, competencies required at each level and how learners can progress.
It will also provide for recognition of prior learning, credit accumulation and transfer, equivalence and multiple entry and exit points.
This means people who have acquired skills through apprenticeships, workplaces or informal training could have those competencies assessed and recognised.
Mr Kasakya said the new system is intended to promote lifelong learning and allow learners to upgrade their skills at different stages.
Council warns against substandard training
The Council also warned training providers against lowering standards in the name of making education accessible to disadvantaged learners.
Under the TVET Act, 2025, the Council is responsible for registering and licensing providers and trainers, accrediting programmes and enforcing quality standards.
Mr Kasakya said poor learners deserve quality education just as much as other students, warning that weak training could undermine confidence in vocational qualifications and leave graduates without the competencies employers require.
“Accessibility and quality must go together,” he said.
The new TVET system has five levels of providers: Skills Development Centres, Vocational Training Institutes, Technical Colleges, National Polytechnics and National Technical Universities.
The Council said the broader goal is to build a TVET system that is relevant, competence-based, industry-led, flexible and inclusive, while ensuring Ugandan qualifications gain greater recognition nationally, regionally and internationally.
