Modernizing VET in Agriculture in Armenia (MAVETA)



Contract partner: DEZA (SDC) - Direktion für Entwicklung und Zusammenarbeit (Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation) Country: Armenien Funding amount: € 1.800.000,00 Project start: 01.09.2022 End: 31.08.2025

Short Description:

Overall goal


The project's intended impact is: Improved knowledge and skills contribute to (I) sustainable, climate friendly, inclusive growth, (II) increased incomes and (III) enhanced (self)-employment of male and female professionals and graduates in agricultural and related fields.


Expected results


Outcome 1: Professionals and graduates are enabled by the agricultural VET (A-VET) system

a) to apply agricultural and related knowledge, skills and attitudes which are in demand by the market,

b) to find or create sustainably decent income generation opportunities, and

c) to contribute to innovative approaches, solutions, products and services in the market.

Outcome 2: The dual VET system is effective (in particular the A-VET system), based on coherent policies, capacitated institutions, and an established cooperation between the public and the private sector.


Target group / Beneficiaries


The intervention has two distinct geographical scopes: Activities related to Outcome 1 will target specific VET institutions, such as colleges and VET schools. Five colleges and one VET school have been selected from four marzes (Syunik, Lori, Tavush and Armavir) and Yerevan. In the South of Armenia, two agricultural colleges, Goris State Agricultural College and the Sisian College of the Armenian National Agrarian University (ANAU), will be involved in the project. In the North of Armenia, the project will collaborate with the Stepanavan State Agricultural College in Lori marz and Berd State Multifunctional College in Tavush marz. Some of the selected agricultural professions will be also applied in Yerevan college of ANAU. The interventions under Outcome 2 are primarily policy and advocacy activities and therefore they target the national level.

The project's primary beneficiaries are the rural inhabitants of Armenia involved in agriculture and related sectors, particular young men and female individuals interested in farming and related professions.

The target groups include the following categories of beneficiaries: Women and men learners directly engaged in A-VET training; women and men graduating from six selected specialties; rural youth: learners between age of 18 to 30 engaged in learning; vulnerable persons (e.g. internally displaced persons, disabled, etc.); established farmers and professionals in the agricultural sector, such as veterinary specialists, milk and dairy technologists, milk farm managers, orchard farmers (nut and fruit), agriculture machinery mechanics; other learners indirectly benefiting from an improved VET system; relevant agricultural VET institutions: Colleges and university institutions offering A-VET courses; small, medium and large private enterprises including actors in the agricultural and other domains and the primary targeted SMEs that are already or are potentially interested in providing agricultural VET and VET opportunities (apprenticeships). Altogether the project targets over 900 direct beneficiaries.


Activities


Outcome 1 focuses on the development of the dual agricultural VET system in selected geographical areas and involves main directions, namely (i) the development of need-based curricula and learning programmes, (ii) institutional development of VET institutions towards relevant knowledge hubs in the local agricultural VET system, (iii) the capacitation and involvement of private companies in curricula development, co-creation and work based learning processes, and (iv) the empowerment of women and vulnerable persons, such as women, rural youth and disabled, to undergo A-VET courses as a result of tailor-made offers.

Outcome 2 relates to improving the legal and regulatory base of work based learning in general and agricultural VET particularly. The main directions under Outcome 2 include (i) revision of pertinent laws and regulations, (ii) the advocacy and facilitation towards cooperation structures and mechanisms among stakeholders, and (iii) enhancing the capacities of the private sector and public actors. The project is expected to bring systemic changes in the VET-system and the entire agricultural knowledge and innovation system in Armenia.


Context


While about every third employed man and every fourth employed woman in Armenia is engaged in agriculture in some ways, the sector generates just around 14% of the nation’s GDP and rural poverty is widespread throughout the country. In general, the rural population has limited opportunities to engage in any economic activities and lacks the necessary technical, organisational, and technological knowledge and skills to create new income generation opportunities. The development of an effective and sustainable VET system is considered by the Government of Armenia as a pathway to address the needs of not only the rural population but overall economic and social progress as well. The 2022-30 Education Development Strategy pledges to shift the current VET system toward work based learning and specifies the gaps preventing the transition. The problems related to introducing work based learning include weak functionality of VET institutions, outdated programmes and professional standards, disengagement of the private sector and other actors.

project number 8384-00/2022
source of funding OEZA
sector Landwirtschaft
tied 0
modality Project-type interventions
marker Gender: 1, Democracy: 2, Poverty: 1
  • Policy marker: are used to identify, assess and facilitate the monitoring of activities in support of policy objectives concerning gender equality, aid to environment, participatory development/good governance, trade development and reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health. Activities targeting the objectives of the Rio Conventions include the identification of biodiversity, climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, and desertification.
    • 1= policy is a significant objective of the activity
    • 2= policy is the principal objective of the activity
  • Donor/ source of funding: The ADA is not only implementing projects and programmes of the Austrian Development Cooperation , but also projects funded from other sources and donors such as
    • AKF - Foreign Disaster Fund of the Austrian federal government
    • BMLFUW - Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water
    • EU - Funds of the European Commission
    • Others - various other donors are listed in ADA’s annual business report.
  • Type of Aid – Aid modalities: classifies transfers from the donor to the first recipient of funds such as budget support, core contributions and pooled programmes and funds to CSOs and multilateral organisations, project-type interventions, experts and other technical assistance, scholarships and student costs in donor countries, debt relief, administrative costs and other in-donor expenditures.
  • Purpose/ sector code: classifies the specific area of the recipient’s economic or social structure, funded by a bilateral contribution.
  • Tied/Untied: Untied aid is defined as loans and grants whose proceeds are fully and freely available to finance procurement from all OECD countries and substantially all developing countries. Transactions are considered tied unless the donor has, at the time of the aid offer, clearly specified a range of countries eligible for procurement which meets the tests for “untied” aid.