Nyerere strategy vital for industrialisation – Veta

Dar es Salaam. The Vocational Education and Training Authority (VETA) has underscored the need to revisit Mwalimu Nyerere’s strategies in developing vocational skills as part of efforts to boost the labour force, especially at this time when the country gears up for  an industrialised economy.

Veta public relations manager Sitta Peter told The Citizen on Saturday October 14 that during Nyerere’s reign, several levels of vocational training as well as special vocational secondary schools, such as Moshi Technical, Ifunda Secondary and Arusha Technical, were put in place to boost the sector.

 “Such initiatives helped the country produce skilled vocational craftsmen for industry labour force,” he said as Tanzanians from all walks of life commemorated the passing of the late President.

He went on to say that Nyerere’s strategy was setting up technical colleges, including Dar Technical, now Dar Institute of Technology, Mbeya Technical, now Mbeya University, but the youth who were formally trained into middle technical personnel were now fading away.
Technical colleges have now shifted to providing high level education—a fact that has reduced middle level training vital for industrialisation.
“A higher percentage of middle level technicians are needed in the industrialization move and without them, majority of industry owners will be forced to look for unskilled or semi-skilled labour to reinforce their work and therefore defeat the whole purpose of industrialization,” he said.
Initially, the level of experts for technical studies was one engineer per five technical experts who each had five vocational craftsmen’s making a total of one engineer per 25 vocational craftsmen.
He said that this is no longer being practiced and therefore needs to be emphasised as way of developing industrialisation.