Context:
There is a lack of qualified experts and managers for development cooperation (DC). Young graduates usually do not have the necessary professional experience, advisory and management skills and development policy sensitivity when they leave university.
Objective:
Future experts and managers undergo training aligned with the priority areas and future staffing requirements of German and international DC.
Approach:
The DC Trainee Programme works on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It has been training future experts and managers for organisations in German and multilateral DC since 2007. The programme is geared towards priority areas such as ‘crisis and security’ and ‘adapting to climate change’ and towards staffing requirements.
A 17-month trainee programme prepares 20 participants to go on to work as experts or managers in German and international DC. During their standardised training, participants each complete three practical placements, working in German DC, multilateral DC and programme-based cooperation, with the latter providing cross-project support for social, political and economic changes in partner countries. In the course of this practical on-the-job training, they adopt different perspectives to learn about the structures and actors of DC and how it works. They can thus acquire more in-depth professional experience and gain a comprehensive insight into how German and multilateral DC is implemented and steered.