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This methodological note was produced in the framework of the MEDA-ETE regional project's component regarding the 'Euromed Observatory Function'. It aims at promoting the development of indicators for vocational training systems in the Mediterranean region. It focuses particularly on the governance of vocational training systems and proposes a set of criteria to measure their development on the basis of relevant indicators. It concentrates initially on the benefits of introducing governance criteria to improve the results and the effectiveness of vocational training systems. It also covers ways of structuring indicators to measure the development and progress of governance in vocational training. A series of examples are given of possible indicators suited to the Mediterranean region.

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This report belongs to a series of country analyses developed by the European Training Foundation (ETF). It covers: Socioeconomic background; Key policy issues and strategies in the Human Resource Development sector in the country; EU (European Union) and other donors' policy and interventions in the country; ETF strategy of intervention in a mid-term perspective; Objectives and indicators for the Work Programme 2007. The ETF objectives for 2007 are: To monitor the final Tacis project, to contribute to the programming of the human resource development aspects of the DCI (Development Cooperation Instrument) support of economic development in Uzbekistan, and to assist the VET (vocational education and training) reform by informing the policy development and implementation processes through the ETF policy advice activities.

The overarching policies for education and training are laid out in the National Programme for Personnel Training (NPPT) of 1997. The programme gives strong priority to the introduction of 12 years of compulsory education and the related changes in upper secondary education. Its aim is to delay the entry of young people into the labour market until after 18 years of age and to avoid the social problem of large numbers of 15-18-year-olds leaving school without having obtained a qualification, not being able to find a place in the labour market and without access to higher levels of education. To that end a large number of new vocational colleges are being established across the country. According to NPPT the VET system will serve 90% of the 15 year population cohort and the current number of vocational colleges is planned to double to more than 1600 by 2010. VET is seen as a major tool against youth unemployment vis-a-vis the sustained population growth and as one of the drivers of economic development. This policy brought huge investments in vocational colleges’ infrastructure but a policy development which would make VET programmes and qualifications more responsive to its environment received attention only recently. Authorities have retained centralised control over the VET system. With ETF support, gradually policy thinking is moving towards key principles of a national qualification framework in which learning outcomes, employers input and a balanced structure of qualifications levels are being considered. There has been a growing mismatch between VET supply and developing labour market needs. New and emerging occupations, small business development, informal labour market and needs of impoverished population have so far not been appropriately reflected by the VET system. Many graduates face unemployment and college capacities are not sufficiently used for retraining and adult learning in general. Improving quality by modernising teaching methods and content can make VET more attractive and contribute to improving its image.

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The series of reports is indexed from TD/TNC 90.820 to TD/TNC 90.844. Show less

These reports are part of the European inventory of national qualifications frameworks (NQFs). Since 2009, Cedefop has been carrying out a systematic mapping and analysis of NQF developments in countries participating in the European qualifications framework (EQF) process. These reviews, done in close cooperation with the EQF Advisory Group, the European Commission and the European Training Foundation (ETF), have directly supported the development of operational and sustainable NQFs. The reports offer a detailed description of the structure and scope of the NQFs, objectives, functions and institutional arrangements, along with data on the implementation and impact on broader policy areas of the frameworks.

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As part of the European Commission's support for the preparation of the second cycle of the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA II), the [European Training Foundation] ETF is facilitating the process in the enlargement countries through the Future Frame initiative. In Turkey there is a long tradition of technology foresight, and a nationwide exercise involving an extensive and broad range of stakeholders had already been undertaken in the country starting from 2003 to develop 'Vision 2023'. The Frame initiative has therefore focused its efforts on defining a skills vision and roadmap, identifying key targets and priority measures for the human resources development (HRD) sector within Vision 2023. The review of institutional arrangements (RIA) and monitoring components have been approached in a similar way and the results are presented in this report.

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The European Union (EU) European Training Foundation (ETF) Frame Skills for the Future initiative, implemented in 2013 and 2014, has supported the development of comprehensive long-term visions for skills development for 2020, and the planning of comprehensive human resource development (HRD) policies in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey (the [South East Europe and Turkey] SEET countries). This guide provides practical and detailed guidance and support for adapting and implementing foresight methodology to develop a mid-term vision for human resource development (HRD) with a focus on skills. It is envisaged that the results will contribute significantly to the development of the reform strategies of [European Union] EU enlargement countries, in particular for HRD and skills. Show less

The Torino Process was launched by the European Training Foundation (ETF) in 2010 and is a biannual participatory analytical review of the status and progress of vocational education and training (VET) in the ETF partner countries. The aims are to acquire current knowledge about policies and their outcomes in a country, and to strengthen ownership, participation and the evidence base of policy formation.

The vision of the Montenegrin vocational education system is to develop Montenegro as a society of knowledge, where vocational education, as the key factor of economic and social development, will be of high-quality, flexible, efficient, with the professional human resources who will have competitive knowledge, skills and competences and who will be qualified to take part in the labour market, where each individual has equal opportunities for personal and professional development.

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The overarching theme of the conference is system change for lifelong learning. By this, we mean the intentional process of modifying the structure, policies, incentives, and practices in education in ways that lead to fundamental and positive changes in the professional context, attitudes, values, and conduct of education participants and stakeholders to enable lifelong learning opportunities for all. Specifically, the conference will discuss how education and training systems can become inherently adaptive to new challenges so that countries can achieve their commitments to ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all by 2030 in line with the fourth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 4), while also serving the needs and expectations of today's learners, education professionals and providers.

The conference covers six thematic areas: (1) Adapting to a changing skills demand: the focus will be on the implications of changing skills demand generated by emerging economic, societal, and technological trends for people and the education and training systems; (2) New forms of learning: the focus will be on the role of new forms of learning and the preconditions at system level to support these new forms of learning; (3) The changing role of actors: the focus will be on new forms of collaboration and the changing roles and responsibilities of different actors (public authorities, private sector, civil society, and international partners) in governing and financing lifelong learning; (4) Monitoring and adapting: the focus will be on how to monitor in view of confirming progress towards desired changes and agreed objectives, and the use of monitoring results for the calibration of reforms for change; (5) Ensuring skills for all: the focus will be on building inclusive lifelong learning systems designed to provide opportunities for learning and gaining new skills that are accessible and beneficial to all potential learners; and (6) Supporting the green transition: the focus will be on policy and practice to ensure that education and training systems support innovation and the greening of economies and societies.

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Since the last review carried out with the Torino Process in 2010, the situation in the economy registered a modest growth after the global crisis. However, the economic structure is still dominated by low productivity. Most of the workforce in Armenia is employed in labour-intensive sectors of the economy where low skills are required. Beyond the considerable waves of migration from the country in the past, Armenia is currently confronted with demographic challenges which influence the education and training policies within its lifelong learning perspective. There are few indications that the vocational education system managed to come closer to the labour market needs but reforms continued in the country aiming at increasing relevance and quality of [vocational education and training] VET.

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This review of human resources development in Montenegro focuses on the interplay between education and training in a lifelong learning perspective and employment. It also reflects on the importance of equal opportunities in society for the quality of human capital development and takes into consideration the inclusiveness of Montenegro's education, training and employment systems.

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This report provides an account of recent developments in Europe and in the Mediterranean region in the field of qualifications and the recognition of qualifications. It concerns the internal and international recognition of qualifications, providing an analysis of why the recognition of qualifications has become an important issue on policy agendas, what the challenges are, and how countries and territories in the Middle East and North Africa, and elsewhere, are responding. The conclusions reached will focus on national and international issues facing countries and territories in the Mediterranean region, reforms that are underway and further steps that can be taken. Chapter two of the report sets out the main factors that are motivating or driving an increased interest in the region in improving the recognition of qualifications. Chapter three describes how global factors (such as inward investment and migration in internationalised labour markets) and international and European policy responses (such as the Bologna process for higher education and the establishment of the European Qualifications Framework (EQF)) are influencing policies for qualifications development in the Mediterranean region. Chapter four turns the spotlight directly onto qualifications reform in the region. The chapter explores how (and why) governments and stakeholders in the region are seeking to make their qualifications more legible, more coherent and of better quality. While examples will be drawn from across the region, the chapter pays particular attention to the widely shared policy interest in national qualifications frameworks (NQFs), and to developments in the four countries in the region that are involved in the current ETF NQF project.

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