Imported labour worries State

Wed, 16 Aug 2017 09:18:09 +0000

By LINDA SOKO TEMBO

GOVERNMENT is troubled with the increasing dependence on imported human capital when Zambia had enough institutions of higher learning to produce all the required skills.

Speaking at the official opening of a workshop, on the implementation of the Skills Development Fund (SDF), Higher Education Minister Professor Nkandu Luo stressed the need to enhance and speed up skills development in the country to increase productivity.

Prof Luo said that there was need to finance institutions under the Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training (TEVET) system so as to improve skills for both the formal and informal sector.

She said that it was high time the country stopped importing skills from other countries, and concentrated on developing quality human capital, including investing in quality education and skills development in the country.

Prof Luo said SDF was meant to develop human resource in the country in both public and private institutions to enhance new and improved skills for students in all the TEVET training centres with improved standards of learning. “SDF is supposed to develop human resource in this country whether private or public institutions. As a ministry we want to bring a revolution in this country in terms of skills development and reduce on importing contractors to build and roof our houses and many other skills that we are not able to provide as a country,” she said.

Prof Luo said SDF money will be channelled towards the development of all TEVET affiliated institution across the country.

She noted that most TEVET training institutions required proper infrastructure and state of the art learning equipment to improve the education sector.

She thanked the private sector who had been giving the contributions and promised that the money would be put to good use in ensuring they opened new institutions with highly trained  people.