Together, individual stakeholders are much stronger, and each individual contribution adds to the overall success. This also applies to the Tunisian vocational education and training system.

The responsible stakeholders in Tunisia lack the necessary skills and coordination mechanisms for the implementation of labour market-oriented training (training in vocational schools and companies). The GIZ project mentioned in the title therefore aims to strengthen the capacities of the Tunisian vocational education and training system. The involvement of the private sector is intended to improve the quality of training in the textile, tourism and plastics processing sectors. Ministries (state) including substructures, vocational schools and the private sector, including employers' associations, as the main groups of stakeholders, must have good and well-established working relationships with each other, as they play a central role in the framework of dual vocational education and training.

This is exactly where the GIZ TVET Academy comes in. It was commissioned by the GIZ project "Inter-company training with the private sector in Tunisia, FIESP II" to develop tailor-made offers. Cooperation between the three main stakeholder groups is to be improved. To analyse the concrete needs, the Delphi method was applied and implemented through a series of workshops in Tunis in September 2024.

Representatives of the main stakeholder groups were each interviewed as a group on their own in a half-day workshop about their problems with the other two stakeholder groups, as well as about possible solutions and support requests from the project. The statements of the 3-half-day workshops were finalised and confirmed in a final workshop by representatives of all three groups. Building on this, the TVET Academy developed six Human Capacity Development Packages (HCD packages) together with the GIZ project, which contain various qualification concepts and training measures that are to be implemented over the next two years until 31.01.2027. In consultation with the political partner (key stakeholder) and the coordinator assigned by the Ministry of Education for the FIESP II project, it was decided to initially tackle three HCD packages in 2025.

Educational programmes must be adapted to the current and future needs of the economy (HCD Package 1). This includes updating existing training programmes. The process for this is complex and lengthy. As an example, one module of a training course from each of the 3 sectors is to be updated and the associated process optimised. Furthermore, this HCD package includes the continuing education market, which is highly fragmented. Educational qualifications still lack state recognition, which makes it difficult to enter the labour market. A concept note from all stakeholders is intended to help institutionalise the recognitions (certificates).

A conference on pedagogy and new didactic methods is planned, combined with an innovation prize with the aim of strengthening cooperation and exchange (HCD package 3). To increase labour market opportunities (HCD package 6), a marketing and image campaign is also intended to arouse the interest of young people in vocational training in the three industrial sectors, as the social focus is still on university education.

The TVET Academy thus contributes to the achievement of the GIZ project's objectives. Existing relationships between important stakeholder groups were analysed, the problems were addressed in an open dialogue and solutions were formulated in concrete activities, and the implementation was discussed and planned with the project team. This makes an important contribution to improving the quality of the Tunisian vocational education and training system.