Minister courts industry in community colleges

The Ministry of Labour and Manpower Development says it would like to build strong partnerships with private sector companies in its Community Colleges initiative.

Labour Minister Henry Mussa said in an interview that move will help develop the skills base in the industries while also interfacing with the community colleges.

“This is a concept with which we intend to engage the private sector and other stakeholders in vocational training. We realise that it’s not only about equipping the youths with skills but also offering specific needs to the industry.

“This arrangement will help those that are already working to sharpen their skills in line with trends in their field. Such training could be necessary if, for instance, a company wants to acquire specific skills for its artisans,” he said. Meanwhile, according to Mussa, the official launch of the programme is scheduled to take place within the month.

The community colleges, among others, are aimed at increasing access to technical, entrepreneurial and vocational education training for out of school youths and those who fail to make it to formal institutions due to limited capacity and restrictive entry requirements. The first phase of the community colleges has 12 districts namely Chitipa, Karonga, Mzimba, Nkhatabay, Nkhotakota, Dowa, Mchinji, Dedza, Thyolo, Phalombe, Chiradzulu and Blantyre.