Skills Development for Increased Employability Programme

The four-year Skills Development for Increased Employability Programme (SDEP), launched in 2023, strengthens the relevance, quality and governance of the TEVET system, and encourages greater participation of the private sector in skills development initiatives that respond to the needs of industry, in a greener economy. Funded through a partnership agreement with the European Union (EU), the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Zambia is working to support the Government and private actors to focus on the governance and management structures of Zambia’s Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training (TEVET) system and to support the upgrading and maintenance of training facilities and curriculum development. Private sector involvement plays an important role in updating curricula and for the promotion of Work Based Learning (WBL) interventions. The overall objective is to contribute towards improving employability of the labour force for both women and men in Zambia and supporting the TEVET system towards producing relevant skills that match the needs of the industry by the year 2026.