Asian Development Bank offers $70 million to support vocational education in Georgia
The ADB is launching the ‘Modern Skills for Better Jobs Sector Development Programme’, which aims to improve the quality and relevance of VET in priority economic sectors to ensure it is aligned with evolving labour market needs. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a $70 million loan today to help increase labour productivity in Georgia and enhance the competitiveness of the economy by improving access to quality vocational education and training (VET) in the country, announces the ADB.
For this reason the ADB is launching the ‘Modern Skills for Better Jobs Sector Development Programme’, which aims to improve the quality and relevance of VET in priority economic sectors to ensure it is aligned with evolving labour market needs.
With Covid-19 causing a rise in unemployment, the project is designed to boost sectors that respond to pandemics or contribute to economic recovery, such as information and communications technology (ICT), and medical and pharmaceutical production. It will finance the introduction of e-learning and the retraining of workers in hard-hit sectors to help them acquire new skills and find work in areas with increasing employment opportunities", reads the press-release published by the ADB.
The project will also finance the establishment of two innovative skills hubs in existing VET institutes in Kutaisi and Telavi cities of Georgia to deliver high-quality training in seven priority economic sectors: electronic engineering, ICT, medical and pharmaceutical production, fashion and design, water engineering, furniture production and carpentry, and services (hospitality and tourism).
ADB’s programme supports institutional reforms such as a new regulatory framework for adult education and VET enrollment rules, and a more equitable funding scheme to boost participation by youth and vulnerable groups.
Other reforms include increasing the VET budget by 23% and VET teachers’ salaries by 30% to recruit and retain qualified teachers.
UNICEF head to Georgia Ghassan Khalil has praised the reforms of the Georgian Education Ministry focused on the interests of children and youth in the field of education during the crisis caused by COVID-19.
Georgia has been named by OECD education directorate head alongside Finland as a leading country in adapting its education system to remote learning format in circumstances of the coronavirus outbreak.
Georgian education ministry's response to the coronavirus outbreak has been praised by in adapting to the pandemic.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has praised the Georgian distant education system implemented a month ago as one of the best in the world amid the coronavirus outbreak.
The Georgian Ministry of Education has issued a new order which specifies the amount of credits medical students must take per year to graduate. The new requirements of 60 ECTS credits per year can be found at edu.aris.ge. The website also specifies that the duration of studies must be six years (12 semesters).
The European Union is starting nine new projects to support vocational education and labor market development in Georgia.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) will invest €25 million to expand the credit line for Georgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-caps available at the Bank of Georgia to support the recovery of the business sector and the country’s economy from damage wrought by the pandemic.
The European Investment Bank (EIB), the lending arm of the European Union, will invest a total of €35 million to expand the credit line for Georgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-caps available at TBC Bank and ProCredit Bank to support the recovery of the business sector and the country’s economy from damage wrought by the pandemic.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Georgia's Credo Bank (Credo) signed a $4 million loan to support agricultural micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, low-income farm households, small businesses run by women, and agri-tourism in Georgia.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is helping the government of Georgia develop its national plan for Covid-19 vaccine deployment to contain the spread of the coronavirus, says the ADB. Georgian Health Minister Ekaterine Tikaradze said that the ADB's assistance enabled the ministry to quickly mobilise experts and develop a comprehensive plan according to which
Georgian Education Minister Giorgi Amilakhvari on Tuesday said all vocational education programmes across the country would be updated and revised to offer a “completely new concept” with mandatory modules for general education.