The growth of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector is crucial for the country, especially in helping revive Fiji’s economy.

Minister for Education, Premila Kumar, says there are not enough adequate skilled people in many sectors, and this is a great concern.

She adds that TVET will significantly expand Fiji’s human capital, for which in turn will make us less reliant on specialist labor from foreign countries.

She says the impact of COVID-19 has made us realize that we cannot rely on our tourism sector to be the main driver of the economy.

“Due to the downturn of the economy with job losses, Fiji needs to quickly create more opportunities for employment. TVET skills are one of the drivers that support the economic transformation which the country needs. Post pandemic, the TVET sector will become even more critical for our economy.”

Kumar adds through TVET, Fiji will be able to improve productivity in various sectors, reduce unemployment and provide much needed improvement to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises sector.