•It will revive the textile sector in the region, which has been dormant for years.
•Construction of the centre is expected to start this month.
Image: MAURICE ALAL
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The textile centre of excellence to be established at the Kisumu National Polytechnic will revitalise the textile sector in Nyanza, the Vocational and Technical Training PS has said.
Margaret Mwakima said the Sh3.6 billion centre will increase the textile courses to be offered at the institution after completion.
She said the project will revive the textile sector in the region, which has been dormant for years.
“Eventually the graduates will now be better skilled and more competency-based with relevant skills for the industry requirements,” Mwakima said.
The regional flagship TVET institute for textile technology will be established through a partnership between the Ministry of Education and the World Bank.
The World Bank-funded project will be the first of its kind in Kenya and East Africa, offering textile training and skills transfers.
Mwakima spoke on Monday during a capacity building workshop for the governing council and senior management staff of KNP to provide guidance and devise a strategy to attain Effective Oversight and Management – Best Practices in TVET.
The PS said the world has witnessed major advancements in science and technology with a massive shift that has signalled an industrial revolution over the last decade.
“The world today is a global village and has become a very competitive place demanding for the adoption of top-notch technologies to gain leadership in the market,” she said.
Mwakima said the government is committed to investing in Technical and Vocational Education and Training because of the role its graduates play in the creation, adaptation and use of technologies to transform Kenya into an industrial-based economy.
She asked KNP management to lead in offering programmes that are relevant to industry needs and meet international standards.
“Graduates of this institution should be able to gain employment in the global market,” the PS said.
Mwakima said the huge shift has given rise to a demand for uniquely transformative technical skills, a demand that can only be quenched by a properly developed and thoroughly implemented Competency-Based Education and Training programme.
“I wish to reiterate that industry-focused, quality, demand-driven CBET programmes are the foolproof means of ensuring immediate and sustainable employability of TVET graduates,” she said.
Mwakima said they have taken positive and deliberate steps to increase its investment in the TVET sector through infrastructural and human resource development, formulation of proactive regulatory framework and subsidization of tuition fees.
“These efforts have no doubt started paying dividends as evidenced by the ever-increasing enrolment in the sector,” she said.
Mwakima said the Higher Education Loans Board administers loans to students pursuing diploma courses to improve access to higher education and empower the youth.
She challenged the youth to seize this opportunity and acquire the necessary skills, knowledge and competencies that will enable them to compete favourably in the market.
Image: MAURICE ALAL
The PS said to further raise the employability prospects of the youth, the CBET programmes must also infuse relevant soft skills in their training.
Mwakima noted the need to identify unique soft skills that are more significant in the volatile industrial environment and properly infused into the CBET programmes.
“It will empower TVET graduates to perform better, and to survive in the competitive world of work and also inculcate in them the confidence to seek alternate routes other than formal employment,” she said.
On June 16, Thomas Nyang’or, the project’s implementation unit head of monitoring and evaluation, said they have received the funds and advertised for the tender.
Thirty-five local and international contractors have expressed interest.
Construction of the centre is expected to start this month.
The centre will sit on 278 hectares (686 acres). It will house a factory, laboratories, tuition blocks, studios and hostels.
The five-storey office block shall be fitted with a lift for ease of movement for persons living with disabilities and a breastfeeding room.
“Upon completion, the facility will enrol up to 5,000 students annually from Kenya and beyond,” Nyang’or said.
He said Kisumu Polytechnic is reviewing the curriculum to ensure that programmes offered at the institution fit the work environment.
“The review will focus on developing industry-driven programmes to equip learners with the requisite skills to work effectively in the competitive textile, fashion and design industry,” he said.
This will save time and resources spent on retraining workers, Nyong’or said.
He said their goal is to have all their students secure employment within six months after graduating.
Training modules at the institution will require students to spend 60 per cent of their study time working at the factory to acquire skills.
Nyang’or said over 30,000 farmers have been engaged and advised to plant Bt cotton, which is highly productive and profitable.
He said the project will provide direct employment opportunities to over 500 individuals and 2,500 indirectly working at the factory, the institute and the cotton value chain.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris