Practical Guide For Youth Engagement In Technical And Vocational Education

A practical guide for meaningful youth engagement in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Africa

This Manual provides practical, step-by-step guidance to institutionalise meaningful youth engagement in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) systems.

It is designed to help stakeholders strengthen youth participation across all levels of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Africa. Beyond articulating broad principles and recommendations, the Manual provides concrete tools and actionable approaches that can be applied at various stages of the TVET programming cycle to ensure that youth engagement becomes a sustained and measurable practice, rather than a one-off activity.

By defining engagement as a process of partnership and shared leadership, the Guide identifies where and how to involve young people more effectively underlining the principle that youth should be viewed as partners and leaders in building stronger, more inclusive, and more responsive TVET systems.

It emphasises that young people should not only be consulted but also meaningfully involved throughout the entire skills ecosystem, from anticipating labour market needs and defining lesson plans, to co-creating training materials, shaping delivery, participating in assessments, engaging in outreach and recruitment, and finally supporting career guidance and transitions from school-to-work.

How to use this guide

This Guide is designed as a flexible, user-friendly modular tool that can be adapted to different contexts and roles within the TVET ecosystem.

The Guide is organised into seven interconnected modules that help users navigate from initial consultation with young people to a full leadership approach.

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Each module of the Manual is designed to stand alone for ease of use and adaptability.

Indeed, the Guide is not prescriptive – users may focus on the modules most relevant to their work and priorities.

For instance, a TVET provider might start with Capturing Youth Aspirations before addressing Inclusion by Design. At the same time, a policymaker may prioritise strengthening participation of young people in Governance.

A practical guide for meaningful youth engagement in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Africa is a project of the Interntional Labour Organisation (ILO) and further details can be accessed via:

https://www.ilo.org/resource/training-material/practical-guide-meaningful-youth-engagement-technical-and-vocational