| James Kon |
TO FURTHER build on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) development and cooperation, the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation (SEAMEO) Regional Centre for Vocational and Technical Education and Training (Voctech) will launch a Regional Knowledge Platform in two months.
The centre yesterday signed a contract to develop and maintain the online platform with Alif Technologies Sdn Bhd.
Dr Abbes Sebihi, Senior Technical Specialist and Knowledge Management Manager of SEAMEO Voctech said the Regional Knowledge Platform will facilitate cooperation and regional exchanges between TVET stakeholders in Southeast Asia.
The platform is also meant to provide easy access to learning materials and TVET initiatives and improve convenience in the sharing of discussion outcomes and policy dialogues.
The target audience of the platform will be personnel, policymakers, academic institutions and research community in the area of TVET as well as private sector stakeholders and donors, while its strategic partners will be United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Bangkok, UNESCO International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (UNESCO-UNEVOC), Regional Cooperation Platform (RCP), International Labour Organisation (ILO), and Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Dr Abbes Sebihi, Senior Technical Specialist and Knowledge Management Manager of SEAMEO Voctech in his presentation on Regional Knowledge Platform
The exchange of the signed contract between Hajah Noorzainab binti Haji Abdullah and Awangku Yusriyan bin Pengiran Haji Mohammad while Roland Christian Grafe, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Brunei Darussalam, looks on. – PHOTOS: JAMES KON
The sitemap of the online platform will include TVET Polices and System, TVET Training and E-Learning, TVET Matchmaking, Skills on Demand, TVET E-Library, E-Learning Course Pilot, TVET Initiatives and Policy among others.
In his speech, the guest of honour who witnessed the signing, Roland Christian Grafe, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Brunei Darussalam, lauded Brunei’s commitment in advancing technical and vocational education and training.
“With regard to both vocational education and training and the related German cooperation and assistance for its development, Brunei Darussalam holds a central place in the region and beyond,” he said.
“At the centre of Brunei’s involvement stands SEAMEO Voctech, established here in August 1990. As one of the centres and part of the network of the SEAMEO, SEAMEO Voctech can proudly look back on more than 25 years of addressing issues in TVET in the region, through innovative capacity building, research and development and information services,” he added.
“In recognition of the quality of its work, SEAMEO Voctech has been made a preferred partner in Germany’s development cooperation. We cooperate with you on a broad range of topics such as the development of a regional standard for TVET teachers or on setting up a regional model for quality assurance in TVET.
“This cooperation will now be complemented by a further project, the Regional Knowledge Platform on TVET or RKP, which will be located in Brunei. The RKP aims to address several of the aforementioned challenges. This would be, firstly, the lack of regional harmonisation. There is a need to foster cooperation between regional stakeholders in the TVET sector, in particular with respect to coordination and knowledge sharing,” the German envoy noted.
Regarding the platform, he explained that SEAMEO Voctech has joined forces with Germany’s GIZ RECOTVET project and RCP, a network of universities collaborating on TVET teacher education and research.
Additionally, the regional knowledge platform will cooperate closely with UNESCO-UNEVOC and UNESCO Bangkok as strategic partners. The rationale is that UNESCO can provide the RKP with a global perspective while the RKP can add regional insights to UNESCO’s work.
If the RKP is successful, this cooperation “may serve as a model for the establishment of TVET-related knowledge platforms in other parts of the world,” Roland said.
“I am happy to underline that Germany is delighted to enjoy a strong, reliable and fruitful partnership with Brunei,” he added.
Signing the contract on behalf of SEAMEO Voctech was its Acting Director Hajah Noorzainab binti Haji Abdullah, while Alif Technologies was represented by its CEO and Executive Director Awangku Yusriyan bin Pengiran Haji Mohammad. S Kurma Guru, General Manager of Alif Technologies inked on the dotted line as witness to the signing. Also present to witness the ceremony was Dr Paryono, Deputy Director of SEAMEO Voctech Regional Centre.
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