The purpose of this visit is for the representatives to learn from the Nordic educational system and from best practice in implementing educational technology. The tour is part of an initiative to strengthen the Tanzanian educational sector with new frameworks, together with pedagogical tools which are transformative and inclusive for all students.
Access to education is crucial in developing countries to achieve the UN’s sustainability goals, as it promotes economic growth, social inclusion, and reduces poverty and inequality. Tanzania faces an alarming shortage of skilled workers in almost every sector.
To meet these challenges, Tanzanian educational authorities have a long-term goal of building up vocational and higher education to deliver competence aligned with international standards. To help achieve this goal they have entered into a cooperation with Sanoma-owned itslearning and their Finnish educational partner Eduko.
The project, Visjon2030 is funded by NORAD, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, in partnership with Innovation Norway. Its purpose is to develop and scale up innovative solutions and technology that can accelerate the achievement of the UN sustainable development goals (SDGs) in education and health.
The delegation will be visiting institutions in Denmark and Finland to hear presentations by digital education consultants from prestigious universities and colleges.
The educational institutions:
UCL University College, Denmark
VIA University College, Denmark
University of Southern Denmark
Technical Education Copenhagen, Denmark
Varia Vocational College, Finland
Eduko Vocational Training Institute, Finland
The delegates:
NACTVET, Dar es Salaam
Dr. Adolf Rutayuga, Secretary General
Dr. Jofrey Oleke, Director of Compliance, Monitoring and Evaluation
Ms. Mahija Waziri, Senior Coordinator
Arusha Technical College (ATC), Arusha
Dr. Musa Chacha, Rector
Institute of Finance Management (IFM), Dar es Salaam
Dr. Imanueli Mnzava, Deputy Rector
Institute of Rural Development and Planning (IRDP), Dodoma
Prof. Hozen Mayaya, Rector
Prof. Provident Dimoso, Deputy Rector
Addressing educational quality for national development and economic growth
Strengthening vocational and higher education is crucial for the utilisation of important natural resources and for the education and health sectors to be able to meet the challenges of the future. Dr. A.B. Rutayuga, Executive Secretary for the Tanzania National Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (NACTVET) emphasises, “A highly skilled national workforce is essential for developing sustainable businesses and welfare in Tanzania. The goal for this project is to improve the quality of our educational programs and ensure they meet the market demands.”
Through this partnership with itslearning and Nordic pedagogical expertise, we are confident that we will successfully elevate our vocational and higher education and significantly improve learning outcomes among our students in the coming years."
New educational frameworks and pedagogical solutions
To support a sustainable economic growth, it is important to invest in programs to increase the skills of their future workforce. Thomas Gunleiksrud, Head of EU Funding for Sanoma/itslearning says, “It is truly inspiring to take part in this initiative together with local Tanzanian educational authorities and Innovation Norway. By improving education, we are not only changing lives but also creating opportunities for more young people to secure meaningful employment and accelerate economic growth in Tanzania.”
We strongly believe that by investing in modernizing education, we can change the future prospects of the next generation of Tanzanians, enabling them to reach their full potential and contribute meaningfully to the country's development. "
As part of the project, itslearning will also work closely with its educational partner from Finland, Eduko, who will assist in the development of vocational courses adapted to national curricula in Tanzania. The key steps are extensive on-site training in the use of modern digital tools and best-practice pedagogy. This in turn will enable the selected educational institutions to fully accelerate the quality of teaching and learning. Tuija Arola, Ph.D Development Director at Eduko says, "It is a great pleasure and honor for Eduko to be involved with itslearning and Tanzanian educational institutions in developing Tanzanian vocational education. Together with our development partners, we create content that inspires teachers, motivates students and strengthens the quality and accessibility of vocational education."
Eduko's task is to support educational institutions and teachers in the planning of work-life-oriented teaching content and the implementation of modern, digital professional pedagogy."
Visjon2030: A Partnership Approach to Sustainable Solutions
The Visjon2030 initiative was launched in 2014 by the Norwegian government. The objective is to contribute to poverty reduction in countries receiving development aid from Norway. Since then, several projects have been funded in Tanzania with Norwegian partners. Håkon Haugli, Managing Director of Innovation Norway says, "As a financing partner, we strongly believe that this collaboration can contribute by further developing solutions for local needs, which at the same time can be scaled globally."
The partnership between education authorities in Tanzania and itslearning will strengthen the education of qualified labour. Competence is central to achieving sustainable economic growth and welfare in developing countries."
Implementation & Training first schools in early 2023
The project has already signed its first commercial contracts and is in dialog with a growing number of others. Implementation and training will start at the first institutions in April 2023. There will be a continuous rollout during the year, within the capacity of the project.
The agreement signing took place at the Norwegian and Swedish Business Summit in Nairobi in November. Please see this article for more information: Tanzania is raising the quality of education together with itslearning and the Norwegian government