PROJECT DURATION
2021 - 2026
GEOGRAPHIC COVERAGE
Sierra Leone
SECTOR
Automotive repair and maintenance service industry
About
Sierra Leone ranks 181st out of 189 countries and territories on the Human Development Index and remains one of the world’s poorest countries. With young people accounting for approximately one-third of the population, youth unemployment and underemployment are estimated at a staggering 70%. The automotive repair and maintenance sector has significant potential for growth and job creation, driven by increasing vehicle registrations and rising transport imports. However, the sector continues to face a shortage of workers with the technical skills required by employers. A key cause of this skills mismatch is the limited capacity and quality of the technical and vocational education and training (TVET) system, which remains insufficiently aligned with labour-market needs and the practical realities of the automotive industry.
Project
The project aimed to help close the skills gap in Sierra Leone’s automotive aftermarket industry, support the implementation of the country’s National Development Plan 2019–2023, and contribute to decent employment and self-employment opportunities for young people.
It focused on establishing a sustainable system capable of equipping youth with relevant automotive technician and entrepreneurship skills while strengthening their transition into employment and self-employment. To achieve this, the project developed and accredited competency-based, demand-driven curricula; established a regional Automotive Centre of Excellence at Freetown Polytechnic; and provided vocational training, career services and business coaching to unemployed and underemployed youth.
By the end of the project, the following results had been achieved:
- 422 successful completions across the automotive technician and entrepreneurship training programmes, exceeding the target of 400;
- 100% trainee satisfaction with the training received;
- 26.8% female participation across the training programmes;
- Two nationally accredited, competency-based curricula covering automotive maintenance and entrepreneurship;
- An automotive curriculum comprising five qualification levels, 39 modules and 960 instructional hours, complemented by a 40-hour entrepreneurship module;
- A fully rehabilitated and equipped Automotive Centre of Excellence established at Freetown Polytechnic;
- Comprehensive automotive and entrepreneurship teaching and learning materials developed to support consistent and replicable training delivery;
- Trainers and management staff strengthened through national and international capacity-building and study programmes;
- Knowledge-sharing activities conducted with automotive instructors from vocational training institutions across Sierra Leone;
- A Career Service Centre and structured graduate and employer feedback mechanism established; and
- 25 memoranda of understanding signed with private-sector companies to facilitate internships, apprenticeships and job-placement opportunities.
BENEFICIARIES
- Unemployed and underemployed young women and men.
- Automotive and entrepreneurship trainees and graduates.
- Freetown Polytechnic and its trainers and management staff.
- Other vocational training institutions and instructors in Sierra Leone.
- Automotive workshops, garages and companies.
- Employers seeking qualified automotive technicians.
- Sierra Leone’s wider TVET and skills-development system.
PROGRAMME PARTNERS
- Government of Japan
- Ministry of Technical and Higher Education, Sierra Leone
- Freetown Polytechnic
- the National Council for Technical, Vocational and Other Academic Awards
- the Ministry of Youth Affairs
- CFAO Mobility
- the Garage Union and participating private-sector companies.