Modernising Vocational Education and Training (VET) Centres in Azerbaijan

Support to the establishment of Regional Industrial VET Competence Centre in Ganja

31 October 2018

Mariott JW Absheron Baku Hotel

Baku, Azerbaijan

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Minister Jeyhun BAYRAMOV, Minister of Education

Dear Minister Sahil BABAYEV, Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Population

Dear Ms. Alexandra NERISANU, Acting Head of Operations Section, EU Delegation,

Distinguished members of the international community,

Dear Participants

It is a pleasure and great honour to be here today, at the opening of the conference on “Recognition of competences acquired informally and non-formally”.

This is the product of our joint collaboration with the European Union, Ministries of Education and Labor and Social protection.

This initiative is part of a broader project we implement in Azerbaijan, with financial support from the European Union, on Modernising Vocational Education and Training (VET) Centres in the country.

In short, the project focuses on strengthening the vocational education and development capacity of two regions of Azerbaijan –Ganja and Jalilabad, where Vocational Educational Centres have already received and will continue to receive substantial support during the project implementation period, both from the EU and UNDP.

Today’s conference highlights the importance of prior learning as a critical step to expanding Azerbaijan’s diverse workforce and creating a more inclusive labour market.

This will make a wide range of occupations and alternative learning paths available to people coming from different backgrounds.

Provision of quality education and prior learning capabilities is central to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Goal 4 specifically focuses on inclusive and equitable education and recognizes lifelong learning experiences for all and alternative study paths as a critical step for greater employment opportunities in inclusive societies.

Recognition of informally acquired skills and competences and certification of prior learning modalities outside of formal school systems is the first of its kind attempt in Azerbaijan.

In many countries around the world this practice has already been in place and has led to greater opportunities for people who do not have a formal university degree in a specific field of practice to legally enter the national workforce.

In Azerbaijan, the recognition of competencies acquired through non-formal and informal learning is envisioned in the National Strategy for the Development of Education in the Republic of Azerbaijan’ in 2015. We are pleased to see implementation of the ‘Action Plan under the strategy to introduce the system nationwide.

Also, the ‘Strategic Roadmap for Vocational Education and Training Sector in the Republic of Azerbaijan’, calls for investment in Azerbaijan’s human capital. By recognizing the qualification system of prior learning and training, the country will make major contribution towards the implementation of this strategy.

Ladies and gentlemen,

As we put partnerships at the heart of our development work around the world, I want to specifically reiterate to you that we are proud that in pursuing this inaugural platform in Azerbaijan, the EU and UNDP are working in close cooperation with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Population and the State Agency on Vocational Education. In all our joint work with the EU, we follow the well-known EU slogan of #StrongerTogether. Indeed, we are STRONGER TOGETHER.

I trust that my colleagues from the EU will join me in saying that both the EU and UNDP stand ready to provide all the necessary support to the Government of Azerbaijan in addressing some of the challenges facing the market for vocational education in the country.

Thank you! Chokh sag olun!