The cultivation of human resources through school education, vocational training and research development, etc., has become a major pillar of the development support for developing countries.
In the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” is established at the education goal (SDG4). However, education is essential for the attainment of all of the goals.
In order to contribute to the solution of the problems related to educational quality, education-based inequality, youth employment, etc., INTEM Consulting Inc. conducts grant aid projects for the related facilities and equipment related to primary, middle and higher education, and conduct technical knowhow transfers of educational methodology.
As the tuition fee for national universities is free in Egypt, the number of students is increasing, and because the number of students per instructor has grown the decline in the quality of education has become serious. Also, lectures and classroom instruction are centered around theory, and as the number of universities conducting practical/leading edge education are limited a problem has arisen of superior students leaving to study abroad.
In this situation, in 2009 the Japanese and Egyptian governments decided to utilize the special features of Japanese engineering education, and based on the concept of “Small numbers of students, centered around graduate school and research, and practical while providing education meeting international standards”, a bilateral agreement was concluded establishing the Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (E-Just). INTEM was contracted by JICA to conduct grant aid project consulting. The scope of the Japanese side activity was the arrangement of research/practice equipment for the newly established 8 subject Engineering Department. The Egyptian side was responsible for the construction of the campus. As the consulting work we conducted an on site survey (national plan, meeting with the responsible professors, blueprint confirmation, location confirmation, market survey, budget status, etc.). After returning to Japan we put together the project proposal, calculated the project budget, supervised the bidding, contract and purchasing. The final stage consisted of on site installation supervision, which we conducted until the hand over.
This was a long-term project that required us to consider a period spanning 7 years.
Mozambique has abundant natural resources such as coal and natural gas, and while many overseas companies have entered the country increased their investment, there is a drastic shortage or technicians in the industries of construction/civil engineering, welding and steel. In order to cultivate industrial human resources, the Mozambique government is engaged in activities to expand and improve the quality of vocational training. However, because of the shortage of vocational training equipment and the aging of facilities, it is not currently possible to provide adequate training.
In this project, by arranging the equipment and facilities for a vocational training center in each of the following major cities in the northern, central and southern regions, respectively: Nacala City in Nampula Province, Quelimane City, Zambezia Province, and Matolo City, Maputo Province, the plan is to improve the quality of vocational training and contribute to the cultivation of regional industrial human resources. Through the execution of this project, it will be possible to provide high quality vocational training opportunities, and by cultivating human resources that meet the needs of industry, it is expected to assist the promotion of regional industries and contribute to the vitalization of the economy.
In Cambodia, even without graduating from university, by graduating from a “Teacher Training Center”, it is possible to obtain certification as a primary/secondary school teacher. In order to produce high quality teachers, this project will support the building of the foundation of construction of 2 4-year teacher education colleges: in the manner of the Japanese system, in Phnom Penh and Battambang.
In order to move from a 2-year system to a 4-year system, various standards and official documents must be prepared for the operation of the university system. Also, specialized curriculum and syllabuses, and teaching materials, etc., are necessary. On site, the responsibility for the development of the university operation plan and the teacher evaluation guideline etc., will be conducted by the college president and vice president and the college executives, the syllabuses of the various subjects by the university professors, and we will support the above groups through workshops, etc. Also, in terms of Acceptance of Training Participants, guidance will be given in Hiroshima University concerning university operation, and in Nara University regarding syllabus development. Japan’s knowledge concerning the cultivation of educators will be utilized, while aiming to provide guidance concerning educator cultivation and university operation that is suited to Cambodia.
In South Africa, after the abolition of apartheid, the 1994 general election gave birth to the administration of President Mandela, which introduced new policies at a rapid pitch. However, now, 25 years later, especially in the subjects of arithmetic and mathematics, improvement in academic ability has not been achieved.
One source of worry is that when children reach the level of what would be the junior high school rank in Japan, that many can be observed who count their fingers or circles that they have drawn in order to find the answers for math problems. This is because they did not receive proper instruction at the lower grade levels regarding the rank of numbers, addition, which involves the increase of numbers, subtraction, which involves the decrease of numbers, and the multiplication tables. The counterparts: the persons in charge of basic education, have finally begun to have a major interest in mathematics education. However, up till now there hadn’t been any approach demonstrated to the instructors that caused them to clap their hands together and say, ‘That’s it!’. First, we obtained the understanding of the instructors. Then we created a guidance proposal for instructors that included arithmetic study hints to allow children to experience the enjoyment of thinking for themselves, provided technical support for the revision of the curriculum.
In the 1980’s the Senegal government desired to shift from an economy that was dependent on agricultural to an industrial economy, however, domestically there was an extreme shortage of technicians to shoulder the necessary responsibilities of the various industrial fields. At that point, in 1984 the Japanese government established the Vocational and Technical Training Center (CFPT). After that, the CFPT has appropriately captured the needs for industrial human resource development in Senegal, and based on the needs of the era has repeatedly revised its subjects and sent high quality human resources into society.
In recent years, industry has diversified and modernized, and the need for technicians in the private sphere has become even more important. To meet these needs, CFPT has started vocational training directed toward technicians who are currently employed. The purpose of the current survey is to examine whether the equipment requested by the CFPT is really necessary, and, if the requested support is provided, what results can be expected. Planning will be conducted by taking into account the results of the survey.
Up until now, the Japanese government, in preparation for the opening the CFPT, has conducted grant aid 2 times, has dispatched JICA experts, and has held trainings, etc., for CFPT instructors in Japan. Long-term support has been continuously conducted. Since 2003, our company has been the responsible consultant for 3 grant aid projects. We have made aggressive use of the knowledge that we have accumulated since our founding, and through our support of the CFPT have contributed to the cultivation of the industrial human resources of Senegal.
Recently, the Republic of Uganda has achieved stable economic development. However, the majority of its technicians are foreigners, and youth employment is a major issue. Although the outbreak of the civil war interrupted the cooperation efforts, from 1968 on Japan has supported the system improvement of the Nakawa Vocational Training Institute and the cultivation its educators. It has become the top vocational training school in Uganda.
However, accompanying the expansion of the industrial needs of Uganda, while the need for more advanced technical levels has increased, the theoretical bias in the technical education and the resulting lack of practical ability has been pointed out. Our company, in addition to conducting project management, is supporting strengthening of the human resource cultivation function to respond to such needs of the industrial sector. Concretely, we are giving advice and providing technical knowledge transfer to the principal and vice principal of the Nakawa Vocational Training Institute, supporting the establishment of a junior college, and utilizing connections with the industrial sector to develop a practical training course. Also, using the institute as a base, we are aiming to improve the vocational training of Uganda overall.
In Uganda’s industrial sector, female technicians are still a distinct minority. However, through the project, we are very happy that we could offer the opportunity for as many women as possible to receive training as vocational education trainers. This is also a strong source of motivation for us.
