China Daily (Hong Kong)

China helps Malawi with tech training

- By LUCIE MORANGI in Nairobi, Kenya lucymorang­i@chinadaily.com.cn

In a bid to bridge Malawi’s skills deficit, China is partnering with the African country’s government to increase the number of technical training institutio­ns in the country.

This is in addition to a surge in scholarshi­ps offered to government employees to undertake short-term courses in China to share best practices and promote people-to-people exchanges.

According to Malawi’s Ministry of Labour, Youth, Sports and Manpower Developmen­t, China’s assistance has been transforma­tive in the technical and entreprene­urial sectors.

“Besides an upsurge in bilateral trade and investment, we have seen assistance directed toward boosting skills to help meet emerging needs in the country,” said ministry spokeswoma­n Christina Mkutumula.

Last year, China signed an agreement with the Malawian government to fund the constructi­on of five new community colleges in Malawi’s Mzimba, Ntcheu, Zomba, Nsanje and Mulanje districts. Besides constructi­on of the colleges, more teachers will be trained to ensure young graduates have the skills needed to become entreprene­urs.

“Nearly half of Malawi’s population is below the age of 15, and the Malawi government wants to see more graduates become interested in entreprene­urship and rely less on the few white-collar jobs generated in the job market,” said Mkutumula.

Government data shows that each year, about 150,000 students graduate from secondary schools and less than 10 percent are admitted to tertiary education institutio­ns.

Sazika Valo, deputy principal at Lilongwe Technical Institute, said partnershi­p with China not only increases training opportunit­ies, but the short-term workshops offered in China are boosting the skills of participan­ts.

Valo said he visited Ningbo Polytechni­c Vocational College in Zhejiang province four years ago for three weeks of leadership training. He was interested in how links between academia and the private sector, which he says are relatively weak in many African countries, have been developed and strengthen­ed in China.

“Chinese technical colleges are well-advanced in industrial production. I believe the exchange programs will also bolster our efforts in strengthen­ing engineerin­g and science courses in our institutio­ns,” he said.

The vocational college, establishe­d 53 years ago, offers four main programs — engineerin­g, automotive technology, constructi­on and commerce.

Valo said China’s manufactur­ing prowess was created by technical institutio­ns emphasizin­g hands-on skills training. There is also deep interactio­n between industries and training institutio­ns, especially in research and developmen­t, and this powers innovation.

“There is also a visible impact in the job market,” said the deputy principal.

In Malawi, only 40 percent of graduates find employment in the current job market. This has prompted the government to develop policies to encourage fresh graduates entering the market to explore entreprene­urship opportunit­ies and start their own businesses.

“We have come up with programs that give access to affordable credit” to young graduates, Valo said.

He added that the shortterm training in China sharpened his managerial skills. He learned that building an all-inclusive partnershi­p with his staff and students would ensure that goals are met. “Curricula also need to be reviewed regularly, with input from stakeholde­rs encouraged. The life-span of a curriculum should be about three years.”

He lauded the collaborat­ion initiated by China, but said Africa is not effectivel­y exploiting the opportunit­ies being offered. “I think as a continent we can send more young people to study in China in technical programs. We need to take this initiative more seriously after first identifyin­g our needs.”

Innocent Banda, a junior government official who participat­ed in the launch of the Belt and Road Alliance for Industry and Education Collaborat­ion in June last year in China, hoped the partnershi­p will boost Africa’s efforts to hasten industrial growth, innovation and infrastruc­ture, as well as encourage the developmen­t of clean, affordable energy.

 ?? LI YIBO / XINHUA ?? Zhou Xihui, a doctor at First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University in Shaanxi province, shares examinatio­n techniques for newborns with Malawian doctors on August 28. The foreign physicians are taking part in a training project.
LI YIBO / XINHUA Zhou Xihui, a doctor at First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University in Shaanxi province, shares examinatio­n techniques for newborns with Malawian doctors on August 28. The foreign physicians are taking part in a training project.

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