‘Business without social responsibility is business without morality’: employer engagement in upper secondary technical and vocational education and training schools in Ghana

Upper secondary TVET schools are different from other secondary level school-based TVET providers in Ghana. For example, unlike other technical-vocational institutes like the that National Vocational Training Institutes (NVTIs) that prepare students for artisan trades in the informal sector (UNESCO-UNEVOC ), upper secondary TVET schools are the primary routes to technical universities and, in some cases, the labour market (Oketch ). Thus, after completing an upper secondary TVET school successfully (passing all necessary examinations), students can receive two certifications. The first is the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) or the Technical Examination Unit Certificate II, which technical universities accept for admissions. The second is the National Board for Professional and Technician Examination Certificate (NABPTEC), which some employers recognise for employment (UNESCO-UNEVOC ). The strength of dual certification in TVET is what Winch () articulates as ‘TVET training and qualifications have dual value; as passports through education and as accreditation in the labour market’. Moreso, to increase and widen access to TVET opportunities for Ghanaian youth especially school-dropouts, young women and persons with disabilities, the Government of Ghana with the support of multilateral agencies like the World Bank and African Development Bank and other development agencies including Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the German Development Agency (GIZ) continue to implement short-term and long-term TVET projects such as the ‘Youth Inclusive Entrepreneurial Development Initiative for Employment (YIEDIE), the Ghana TVET Voucher Project, and the Apprenticeship to Entrepreneurship Project implemented by the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI)’ (Dadzie, Fumey, and Namara , 28).

Upper secondary TVET schools are different from other secondary level school-based TVET providers in Ghana. For example, unlike other technical-vocational institutes like the that National Vocational Training Institutes (NVTIs) that prepare students for artisan trades in the informal sector (UNESCO-UNEVOC ), upper secondary TVET schools are the primary routes to technical universities and, in some cases, the labour market (Oketch ). Thus, after completing an upper secondary TVET school successfully (passing all necessary examinations), students can receive two certifications. The first is the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) or the Technical Examination Unit Certificate II, which technical universities accept for admissions. The second is the National Board for Professional and Technician Examination Certificate (NABPTEC), which some employers recognise for employment (UNESCO-UNEVOC ). The strength of dual certification in TVET is what Winch () articulates as ‘TVET training and qualifications have dual value; as passports through education and as accreditation in the labour market’. Moreso, to increase and widen access to TVET opportunities for Ghanaian youth especially school-dropouts, young women and persons with disabilities, the Government of Ghana with the support of multilateral agencies like the World Bank and African Development Bank and other development agencies including Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the German Development Agency (GIZ) continue to implement short-term and long-term TVET projects such as the ‘Youth Inclusive Entrepreneurial Development Initiative for Employment (YIEDIE), the Ghana TVET Voucher Project, and the Apprenticeship to Entrepreneurship Project implemented by the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI)’ (Dadzie, Fumey, and Namara , 28).

Upper secondary TVET schools are different from other secondary level school-based TVET providers in Ghana. For example, unlike other technical-vocational institutes like the that National Vocational Training Institutes (NVTIs) that prepare students for artisan trades in the informal sector (UNESCO-UNEVOC ), upper secondary TVET schools are the primary routes to technical universities and, in some cases, the labour market (Oketch ). Thus, after completing an upper secondary TVET school successfully (passing all necessary examinations), students can receive two certifications. The first is the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) or the Technical Examination Unit Certificate II, which technical universities accept for admissions. The second is the National Board for Professional and Technician Examination Certificate (NABPTEC), which some employers recognise for employment (UNESCO-UNEVOC ). The strength of dual certification in TVET is what Winch () articulates as ‘TVET training and qualifications have dual value; as passports through education and as accreditation in the labour market’. Moreso, to increase and widen access to TVET opportunities for Ghanaian youth especially school-dropouts, young women and persons with disabilities, the Government of Ghana with the support of multilateral agencies like the World Bank and African Development Bank and other development agencies including Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the German Development Agency (GIZ) continue to implement short-term and long-term TVET projects such as the ‘Youth Inclusive Entrepreneurial Development Initiative for Employment (YIEDIE), the Ghana TVET Voucher Project, and the Apprenticeship to Entrepreneurship Project implemented by the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI)’ (Dadzie, Fumey, and Namara , 28).

Upper secondary TVET schools are different from other secondary level school-based TVET providers in Ghana. For example, unlike other technical-vocational institutes like the that National Vocational Training Institutes (NVTIs) that prepare students for artisan trades in the informal sector (UNESCO-UNEVOC ), upper secondary TVET schools are the primary routes to technical universities and, in some cases, the labour market (Oketch ). Thus, after completing an upper secondary TVET school successfully (passing all necessary examinations), students can receive two certifications. The first is the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) or the Technical Examination Unit Certificate II, which technical universities accept for admissions. The second is the National Board for Professional and Technician Examination Certificate (NABPTEC), which some employers recognise for employment (UNESCO-UNEVOC ). The strength of dual certification in TVET is what Winch () articulates as ‘TVET training and qualifications have dual value; as passports through education and as accreditation in the labour market’. Moreso, to increase and widen access to TVET opportunities for Ghanaian youth especially school-dropouts, young women and persons with disabilities, the Government of Ghana with the support of multilateral agencies like the World Bank and African Development Bank and other development agencies including Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the German Development Agency (GIZ) continue to implement short-term and long-term TVET projects such as the ‘Youth Inclusive Entrepreneurial Development Initiative for Employment (YIEDIE), the Ghana TVET Voucher Project, and the Apprenticeship to Entrepreneurship Project implemented by the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI)’ (Dadzie, Fumey, and Namara , 28).