"...TVET is the main key to unlock treasures while the world now keeps an eye out to concentration on the labor force skills leading to poverty alleviation..."
Secretary of State of Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training, 2014
This profile is represented by the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, and National Technical Training Institute (NTTI). SEA-VET.NET shall supplement more information from other TVET line Ministries, private TVET institutions and relevant agencies in the course of time. Please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to share relevant information to help us further develop the profile.
Phnom Penh
Manufacturing (Textile, Wearing Apparels, Footwear); Agriculture (Rice)
Cambodia’s demographic transition has opened a window of opportunity as a large proportion of the population is of a working age, which includes a sizeable segment of those about to enter the labour markets. The population distribution in Figure 1 shows the relatively large age cohort comprising those aged 20–24 years. The largest age cohort, ages 10–14, will be joining the workforce in just a few years.
However, making use of this opportunity remains a challenge. According to the last labour force survey in 2012, only about 28% of Cambodia’s working age population of 10.7 million had completed secondary education, and only 1% attended vocational training; while 2% attended university. It will be critical for Cambodia’s continued socio- economic development not only to encourage increased access to technical training for new labour markets entrants but also to upgrade the skills and competencies of the existing workforce.
Figure 1: Population Pyramid of Cambodia, 2008 and 2013 (Cambodia Inter-Censal Population Survey, 2013)
The vision of TVET national policy 2017-2025 is to improve the livelihood and dignity of people, and to enhance Cambodian workforce’s knowledge, competence, skills, working attitudes, professional ethics, high productivity and competitiveness.
This policy aims:
For the development of TVET in Cambodia, the Government of Cambodia established the MLVT Strategic Development Plan 2014-2018, the TVET Strategic Development Plan 2014-2018, the Industrial Development Policy 2015-2025, the National Employment Policy 2015-2025 and the National TVET Policy 2017-2025, which contains all the latest goals and strategies that are to be achieved.
Moreover, as the government has recognized the challenges of skills shortage and skills mismatches, ensuring education and TVET are responding to the needs of the labour market is pivotal. The National Employment Policy 2015-2025 addresses this issue in the following:
Education and TVET strategies are designed to ensure that youth are equipped with the skills that match industry needs. Quality Assurance Systems and the reform of the TVET teacher training curriculum are being undertaken to ensure quality TVET programmes and that TVET trainers have up-to-date and industry-matched knowledge and skills. Youth, especially school drop-outs, are prioritized given their potential role in the labour markets and the national economic development. The National Employment Agency (NEA) has been working towards addressing youth employment by:
To ensure the quality of TVET provision,
To ensure equitable access to TVET, education and training provision is open for private sector providers as well. Besides that, the private sector plays an important role in the development of TVET in Cambodia and they are cooperating with the MLVT by:
Furthermore, under the TVET national policy 2017-2025, MLVT has committed to transform low-skill workers to medium- and high-skilled workers to reach the RGC goal, i.e. Cambodia becoming upper-middle income country by 2030 and a developed country by 2050.
According to UNESCO (2013), the governance model of the Cambodian TVET system has been evolving on four main fronts over the last decade. The first front has been the setting up of an entity with specific responsibilities for setting standards, certification, assessment and evaluation of the TVET system. The second front is the more recent policy decision to decentralise. The third front relates to school empowerment and autonomy. The last front is about the involvement of civil society and social partners in policy decision making.
Until 2004, formal TVET was under the Office of Technical and Vocational Training of the MoEYS. The office was directly responsible for the administration and development of TVET and for the management of its institutions and programmes. In 2005, the responsibilities for TVET were transferred from MoEYS to the newly constituted MoLVT under a Directorate General of TVET (DGTVET). Responsibilities for non-formal and informal (short course) vocational training were similarly transferred to the new ministry from the Ministry of Social Welfare.
The key players within the Cambodian TVET system include
The National Training Board (NTB) is the head decision of TVET sector in Cambodia. It approves policy, sets program objectives and establishes measurable targets. The NTB has a coordinating function and assumes the leadership role in linking a national training program to the needs of the economy by the National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP). The members of the NTB consist of representatives from different ministries as well as from the private sector, employees, training providers, international organizations and non-government organizations. The NTB, which consists of representatives from all 14 ministries and training institutions, is responsible for policy direction and coordination.
With regards to the institutes, regional training centres (RTCs) and provincial training centres (PTCs), DGTVET provides leadership and guidance in the development of the vision, the mission and the strategic direction as well as in mentoring and training of the senior management to develop management capacity. DGTVET sets objectives, allocates resources and monitors output.
The chart below illustrates the NTB structure:
Figure 2: NTB Structure (UNESCO, 2013)
Figure 3 illustrates Cambodia’s TVET governance arrangements; with NTB as the most important policy-setting authority. It sets performance standards for all TVET system participants. The NTB is expected to set occupation and certification standards.
Figure 3: Cambodia’s TVET governance arrangements (UNESCO, 2013)
Government, international organisations, donors and others stakeholders finance TVET in Cambodia. The government and non-governmental funds are allocated by the NTB throughout the National Training Fund, which was established in 1998. Furthermore, the Asian Development Bank is the major donor agency which has been funding TVET since 1992 in Cambodia. (UNESCO-IBE, 2011).
In 2009, the recurrent budget for MoLVT was set at USD12.735 million, of which USD9.22 million was earmarked for central administration and USD3.515 million for provinces and cities (UNESCO, 2013). In addition, a triennium capital expenditure budget (2009–2011) was set at 8.167 million dollars, of which 1.24 million was set down for expenditure in the 2009 financial year.
Since its creation in 2005 with a budget of 2.949 million dollars, the MoLVT’s recurrent funding has increased nearly 350% over the five years period or on average just over 45 per cent year on year. While full disaggregation and allocation of the budget data is not possible, it seems that approximately 50% of the recurrent annual allocations to the (2009) were for training provision in PTCs and for long-course institutes (DGTVET, 2009).
Below is government budget for TVET from 2013 to 2017:
Year |
Government Budget for TVET (in million USD) |
2013 |
8.33 |
2014 |
4.05 |
2015 |
9.1 |
2016 |
16.02 |
2017 |
12.82 |
Noted: 1USD= 4 000 Riel
The Government budget is allocated to achieve the following main objectives:
Furthermore, the TVET Sector Development Project 2015-2021 is a project in the framework of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) with a total cost of USD 42.26 million (ADB=23.0 Million, AFD=15.00million, RGC=4.26 million).
The project has four outputs:
Output1: Increased access to TVET programs
Output2: Improve quality and relevance of TVET system
Output3: Increased involvement of employers in TVET delivery
Output4: Strengthened governance and management of the TVET system
NATIONAL EDUCATION SYSTEM
The education system in Cambodia consists of four levels: pre-school education, primary education, secondary education (lower and upper), and higher education. Six years of primary education and three years of lower secondary education make up the country’s basic education provision.
After the completion of lower secondary education, students have the choice of continuing to upper secondary education or of entering secondary-level vocational training programmes offered by the MoLVT. After completing upper secondary education, students can either enter vocational training (lasting from one to three years depending on the programme) or universities (which offer two-year associate degree programmes, four-year bachelor’s degree programmes, and seven-year medical programmes).
The Non-formal Education Department of the MoEYS plays an important role in providing literacy and life skill programmes, as well as short-term vocational training to school dropouts and adults.
Figure 4: Education system and Training in Cambodia
Enrolment in TVET Systems
The TVET system in Cambodia includes all forms of learning and development with a major technical or vocational component. This comprises formal technical or vocational education provision, whether in school, college, university, training or work settings, formal training programmes, less formal / more informal learning while working, and other forms of learning which may be self- directed or involve peer learning (UNESCO, 2013).
In addition to that, the requirement of enrolment to TVET stream are as follows:
Level |
Technical and Vocational Education and Training |
Requirements |
8 |
Doctoral degree |
Holding Master’s degree (technology or business) |
7 |
Master’s degree (technology or business) |
Holding Bachelor’s degree (technology or business) |
6 |
Bachelor’s degree (technology or business) |
Holding high school certificate or holding higher diploma (technology or business) |
5 |
Higher diploma (technology or business) |
Holding C3 or complete grade 12 in general education |
4 |
Technical and Vocational Certificate 3 (C3) |
Holding C2 |
3 |
Technical and Vocational Certificate 2 (C2) |
Holing C1 |
2 |
Technical and Vocational Certificate 1 (C1) |
Completed grade 9 or holding skill bridging certificate |
1 |
Vocational Certificate |
No requirement |
There is a possibility for people who drop out of school to attend non-formal literacy and life-skills programs, which is important in a sense that it gives them access to enrollment in technical and vocational education training offered by various institutions.
Formal TVET
After compulsory education, which consists of a six year primary school followed by a three- year lower secondary school, students can enroll in the formal TVET programmes or continue to the three-year upper secondary general education. Upper secondary TVET programmes are offered at three different levels (each lasting one-year) in a wide variety of areas, including vehicle repairing, general mechanics, computer technology, agricultural mechanics, electricity, electronics, repairing of cooling mechanics, and civil engineering.
The formal TVET system also recruits graduates from upper secondary schools, who have completed grade twelve. The duration of the training varies depending on the course, but it lasts a minimum of one-year. For instance, technical and professional training institutions offer programmes lasting two to three-years and leading to a certificate/high diploma (Diploma for Technician). Other providers of tertiary TVET are polytechnics and a small number of vocational training centres/schools.
In Cambodia, formal TVET provision covers four main levels:
The table below highlighted enrolment by qualifications level in 2010:
Qualifications |
Enrolment |
||
Male |
Female |
Total |
|
Bachelor & Upper |
1,523 |
458 |
1,981 |
Diploma level |
2,466 |
842 |
3,308 |
Certificate I, II, III |
404 |
342 |
746 |
Source: DGVET in UNESCO (2013)
Formal TVET programmes are delivered mostly in polytechnics and technical institutes. There are 39 public TVET Institutes. They have been established through funding from Royal Government of Cambodia and there are 73 private TVET Institute and NGOs not funded by the state.
Non Formal TVET Programmes
According to UNESCO (2014), the provincial training centres and Vocational Training Centres, are the main providers of non formal TVET. However, there are also public institutions such as Provincial Training Centres (PTCs), Community Learning Centres (CLCs), Non- Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Women’s Development Centres, private providers, and small businesses offering informal apprenticeships.The courses are short term and last from one to four months and focus basically on agriculture, construction, motor repairs and basic food processing (Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, 2011, UNESCO, 2013).
There exist 22 PTCs which offer agriculture, craft and basic vocational skills. PTCs operate at a variance with each other in terms of enrolment, length of training and delivery modality. CLCs, under the MoEYS, offer literacy and basic vocational training for income generation. At the moment, there exist 157 CLCs.
According to DGVET, on the basis of official registration data, provincial data, directories, and advertising records, an estimated 750 private businesses offering fee-based training services were identified nationwide. The largest single group offered computer and/or English language training. Other providers were identified as driving schools, dance academies and small auto or electrical workshops, which offered informal apprenticeships.
In Service Training Programme
In-service training programmes are not regulated in Cambodia. Little information is available regarding the actors, the scale and the importance of in-service training. Quantitative information (with corresponding performance indicators) is limited to a relatively small scale of activity reported in a scattered way by CAMFEBA and other organizations.
There is evidence that few private enterprises are spending significant amounts on in-company technical and vocational training.
The CQF is the National instrument that develops and classifies qualifications based on a set of nationally agreed-upon criteria for specified learning levels. CQF encompass all levels of Education and Training in Cambodia, in service of the nation’s Human Resources Development. There are eight levels of qualifications and each level is differentiated by the general characteristic classified criteria that include minimum entrance requirements, typical duration, programme characteristics, cumulative duration in fulltime equivalent, type of subsequent education and learning outcomes. The framework has a credit system so that the volume learning may be recorded and students may receive credit for all qualifications.
The Cambodia Qualification Framework (CQF) is the national instrument that develops and classifies qualifications based on a set of criteria that is agreed nationally for specified levels of learning achieved. It is a policy and strategy in the quality assurance of education and training which clarifies the standard of learning outcomes, academic levels and the quality of qualifications, and is widely recognized as such as in the international academic and professional communities. Currently, Cambodia features its own qualification framework with 8 levels starting from Level 1, which enables students to get a Vocational Certificate by doing non-formal courses or being recognized for prior learning or current competencies (RPL, RCC). The main mandate of the Ministry is to produce skilled workers; therefore due attention should be paid to Levels 2, 3 and 4, which enable students to obtain Technical and Vocational Certificates. The CQF provides a framework for vertical pathways within TVET and lateral pathways between TVET and general education.
Level |
Technical And Vocational Education and Training (TVET) |
Higher Education (H.E) |
8 |
Doctoral Degree Of Technology/ Business Education |
Doctoral Degree |
7 |
Master Degree Of Technology/Business Education |
Master Degree |
6 |
Bachelor Of Technology/Business Education |
Bachelor Degree |
5 |
Higher Diploma/Associate Degree Of Technology/Business Education |
Associate Degree |
4 |
Technical And Vocational Certificate 3 |
|
3 |
Technical And Vocational Certificate 2 |
|
2 |
Technical And Vocational Certificate 1 |
|
1 |
Vocational Certificate |
As a member of ASEAN, the CQF (Cambodia Qualification Framework,) is aligned with the regional qualification framework through the process of referencing Cambodia is still in the process of developing a fully integrated CQF.
Quality Assurance of TVET in Cambodia is implemented through self-assessment and external assessment. Self-assessment is conducted within TVET institutions themselves while the external assessment is conducted by the Department of Quality Assurance. Both self- and external assessment follow a 5-point scale (from zero to four). There are some criteria in the assessment including:
In addition to that, TVET programmes suffer several shortcomings in relation to quality assurance (World Bank, 2010; ADB, 2009):
TVET Graduates
The most popular courses among students in addition to the sectors that are considered financially rewarding include:
The number of TVET graduates in five consecutive academic years are shown in the table below:
Academic Year |
Students Graduation |
|
Total |
Female |
|
2012-2013 |
87,660 |
47,094 |
2013-2014 |
85,490 |
44,448 |
2014-2015 |
43,195 |
22,893 |
2015-2016 |
38,527 |
22,108 |
Total |
254,872 |
136,543 |
Source: Department of Training/ Director General of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (DGTVET) Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT).
Quality of graduates
In the recent reports of Employer Skills Need Survey in 2012 and 2014 (Bruni, Luch, &Kuoch, 2013; Kuoch, 2014), around 90 percent of employers surveyed reported TVET graduates (first-time job seekers) were well prepared. However, they still lack some significant skills as follows: life experience, technical or job-specific skills, poor attitude, foreign language skills, and communication skills.
We do not have data for age of teaching workforce for the time being. However, the data for male-female ratio is presented in the table below:
No. |
Description |
Leader/ Manager |
Teacher |
|||
Permanence teacher |
Contract staff |
Assistance |
||||
1 |
Public TVET |
Total |
96 |
1,060 |
39 |
292 |
Female |
18 |
336 |
10 |
112 |
||
2 |
Private TVET |
Total |
69 |
193 |
509 |
0 |
Female |
15 |
39 |
117 |
0 |
||
3 |
NGOs TVET |
Total |
42 |
227 |
9 |
0 |
Female |
26 |
128 |
4 |
0 |
||
4 |
Total |
Total |
207 |
1,480 |
557 |
292 |
Female |
59 |
503 |
131 |
112 |
||
Ratio |
29% |
34% |
24% |
38% |
Source: Department of Institution Management
The basic qualification requirement of teachers/trainers is their competence in at least one level above the level that they provide the training. For example, the basic qualification of teachers/trainers for C1 (certificate level 1) is that he/she is competent in C2 (certificate level 2).
TVET teachers are selected among any citizens with maximum age level according to the degree they are holding. Selection is done through an examination, which includes the specialized subject (for example, civil engineering) and general knowledge. Up to 2016 TVET teachers training courses, which take place at National Technical Training Institute, were delivered as one-year courses. However, due to a change in curriculum design, the training course now stretches over one and a half years. The updated curriculum allows TVET teacher trainees to work in the industry for approximately six months to experience up-to-date technology to enhance their own course delivery and teaching.
The National Technical Training Institute (NTTI), founded officially in 1999, is a state-owned higher education institute under the direction of the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MOLVT). The NTTI is responsible for training selected university graduates to become capable and professional TVET teachers and upgrading trainers and administrative TVET staff. Teacher training is a one year programme consisting of thirty-seven credits. The NTTI also provides Vocational Technical Teacher Training Programme through which candidates can apply for Master, Bachelor and Diploma (Associate) degrees (World TVET Database Cambodia, 2014).
In addition to that, the Government has set a policy to train 300 TVET teachers every year and by 2012, more than 2000 teachers were trained (WDT Cambodia, 2014).
Salary system for TVET teachers as well as other government officials – depends on many variables and individual situation and must be stated in context.. However, simplified as a rough orientation, it can be described as follows:
TVET teachers are categirized into two levels, A and B, for example, the TVET teaches in level A are paid higher wage (around USD 330) and normally hold a bachelor’s degree and equivalent, while Level B teachers’ salary is approximately USD 290. The teachers in Level B may hold a bachelor’s degree or higher diploma.
An incentive of aroud 3-4 percent salary increase is offered to experienced TVET teachers every two years.
For the time being, the private sector is involved with TVET in terms of curriculum design, standards framework development, and competency assessment for some courses such as ICT, construction, electric, machinery, wielding etc (CQF level 1-4). This collaboration is not with a specific business association but with individual private enterprises. The ministry invites and discusses with the private sector. The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT) cooperates with the private sector on:
Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is considered as an important institutional set-up to improve the quality and relevance of TVET. There are several organisations that can play an important role in developing a sound PPP in Cambodia. These organisations are acting at the national level and by sector. The Cambodian Federation of Employers and Business Associations (CAMFEBA) is an overarching body representing and safeguarding the rights and interests of employers in term of labour issues. The Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia (GMAC) is an employers’ organisation of the apparel industry.
CAMFEBA’s work on youth and employment is a good example of employers’ strategic interest in human resources development. CAMFEBA is an overarching body representing and safeguarding the rights and interests of employers regarding labour issues. CAMFEBA also acts as a training provider with a view to (WDT Cambodia, 2014):
GMAC identifies one of its missions as applying pressure on the Government to deliver an employment sector policy with more relevant programmes and appropriate certification. The association is planning to take a loan from the French development agency to set up a private vocational training centre focused on textiles and garments and with a strategic objective to develop skills which allow learners to move up the value chain (WDT Cambodia, 2014).
According to Oum and Ngov’s (2017) total labour demand and supply forecast, in 2019, the demand for labour will remain unchanged, exceeding the supply, particularly for the upper secondary (completed) level. Their forecasted employment by occupation (2017) shows that the average annual growth rate (2014-2019) of employment for technicians is around 2%, for plant and machine operators around 6%, while the annual growth rate of employment for professionals is the highest (around 15%).
By education level, the average annual growth rate of employment of TVET post-secondary diploma and pre-secondary diploma show the highest figures, around 16% and 21% respectively. They are followed by higher education, lower-secondary completed, and upper-secondary completed (around 8%, 6.5%, and 4.5% respectively).
Despite higher average annual growth rate of employment for TVET graduates, the share of TVET enrolment remains low if compared to the academic one. In Oum and Ngov (2017), the educational share of TVET is less than 2%.
To date, there is no empirical study on return to investment for TVET students. However, there is an increase in awareness of TVET by the public recently due to observed job needs as well as the effort to promote TVET on media.
The TVET National Policy 2017-2025 is the roadmap to develop skills in Cambodia so Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training and Directorate General of Technical and Vocational Education and Training are going to develop a strategy plan which will follow that policy.
Since the development process for TVET requires many steps, the Departments dealing with TVET have increased from 3 to 6 (1-Department of Labour Market Information, 2-Department of Training, 3-Department of Standard and Curriculum, 4-Department of Quality Assurance, 5-Department of Policy and Strategy and 6-Department of Institution Management). In ensuring the quality of TVET provision, the curriculum for TVET teacher trainees has been reformed this year in order to ensure that future TVET teachers have knowledge about TVET as well as the up-to-date knowledge in current technology used by the industry.
According to the National Technical Vocational Education and Training Policy 2017-2025, the Royal Government of Cambodia has recognized some challenges to TVET as follows:
Action Plan or Recommendations
To overcome these challenges, four main goals are set in the National TVET Policy:
ADB |
: |
Asian Development Bank |
ASEAN |
: |
Association of South East Asian Nation |
CAMFEBA |
: |
Cambodian Federation of Employers and Business Associations |
GMAC |
: |
Garment Manufacturers Association of Cambodia |
CLC |
: |
Community Learning Centres |
COE |
: |
Center of Excellence |
CQF |
: |
Cambodia Qualification Framework |
DLMI |
: |
Department of Labour Market and Industry |
HDI |
: |
Human Development Index |
MoEYS |
: |
Ministry of Education Youth and Sport |
MoLVT |
: |
Ministry of Labour and Vocational Education and Training |
NEA |
: |
National Employment Agency |
NSDP |
: |
National Strategic Development Plan |
NTB |
: |
National Training Board |
NTF |
: |
National Training Fund |
NTTI |
: |
National Technical Training Institute |
PPP |
: |
Public Private Partnership |
PTB |
: |
Provincial Training Board |
PTC |
: |
Provincial Training Centre |
QA |
: |
Quality Assurance |
RGC |
: |
Royal Government of Cambodia |
RPL |
: |
Recognition of Prior Learning |
RPLCC |
: |
Recognition of Prior Learning and Current Competencies |
RTC |
: |
Regional Training Centre |
SSC |
: |
Sector Skills Council |
UNESCO |
: |
United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation |
UNESCO-IBE |
: |
UNESCO International Bureau of Education |
VSC |
: |
Vocational Skills Certification |
0.94 male(s)/female (2017 est.)b
0.563 (2015)c
$22.25 billion (2017 est.)b
$4,000 (2017 est.)b
Agriculture: 25.3%
Industry: 32.8%
Services: 41.9% (2017 est.)b
16.5% (2016 est.)b
0.459 (2015)c
77.2% (2015)c
10.9 (2015)c
4.7 (2015)c
53.1% (2013)c
0.5% (2015)c
0.8% (2015)c
Agriculture: 48.7%
Industry: 19.9%
Services: 31.5% (2013 est.)b
a Population Pyramid
b CIA World Factbook
c UNDP HDR
For official government data on key indicators, please refer to data released by official government source(s).
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