The University of South Africa (UNISA) will be hosting its first hybrid international conference on technical and vocational education and training (ICTVET2024). The conference will be organized in close partnership with the South African Public Colleges Organization (SAPCO – organization that represents 50 public TVET colleges in South Africa), supported by the Education Training and Development Practices Sector Education and Training Authority (ETDP SETA), the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET). The theme of the conference is: Advancing TVET for Digitalized World, Youth Skilling, Employability and Sustainable Development (National, Regional, and International)”.
Global disruptions such as climate change, digitalization, the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), demographic change, and migration are changing the way we live, work, and learn. New technologies are emerging, remote forms of working and learning are becoming commonplace, and workers need new skills such as problem-solving, ICT, entrepreneurship, and STEM, while continuing to require traditional skills and knowledge.
TVET systems must therefore rise to the challenge of supporting learners to prepare them for the workplace of the future. Improving the future-readiness of TVET systems is crucial for assuring their relevance and, ultimately, their survival. To prepare learners for future competencies and industry requirements, TVET teaching staff /trainers must possess these essential competencies and qualities themselves. Therefore, this hybrid conference sought to collect input from the wider technical and vocational and training (TVET) community on how TVET systems can be better organized to deliver the skills demanded in a rapidly changing and increasingly complex labour market. However, many countries have made tremendous strides in several areas to shape the future of TVET systems.
More broadly, the objectives of conferences are to: gather knowledge, experiences and practices on the steps that TVET systems should take at policy, institutional and practitioner levels to prepare teachers and trainers to deliver the skills needed in the 21st century and beyond, gather insights and evidence from TVET community about where TVET systems stand when it comes to ensuring inclusiveness, with special focus on particularly vulnerable groups; share practical ideas to empower youth and adults with relevant TVET skills for employment, decent jobs, and entrepreneurship; gain insights from private sector, and employer stakeholders about the changes in job profiles and skills that TVET should provide to support sustainable development.