(Ecofin Agency) - In Africa, technical and vocational education faces many challenges, especially for young people and women. Among these challenges are the mismatch between training and jobs, along with a rapidly growing population.

The 15th Ordinary Session of the Conference of Ministers in Charge of Employment and Vocational Training for the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) concluded on September 27. This conference focused on strengthening cooperation in employment and vocational training. Its mission is to create a quality standard to improve job opportunities for young people and women.

“This 15th conference is a step in our process to enhance vocational training, with a special focus on implementing a quality system to improve youth employability in our community,” said Koffi N'Guessan, the Ivorian Minister of Technical Education and Vocational Training, who hosted the event.

The initiative aims to help countries offer training programs that meet the needs of young people and women, who are among the groups most affected by unemployment.

The conference also welcomed representatives from other African countries, including Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Chad. For all the countries involved, the goal is to prioritize vocational education, which is often seen as a second-chance option.

One challenge is finding ways to spark interest among young people in vocational education. “We need to show that technical and vocational training is not just a second chance, but a real opportunity,” said Ivorian Prime Minister Robert Beugré Mambé during his speech at the conference. He also pointed out the lack of cooperation between training institutions and the private sector, the gap between theory and practice, and the mismatch between training programs and the job market. He emphasized the demographic issue, noting that “people under 25 to 30 years old make up over 70% of the population in our WAEMU countries,” urging governments to increase training capacity to accommodate more learners.