Mit beruflicher Aus- und Weiterbildung Zukunft in Saudi-Arabien gestalten

"Only 9 percent of one age cohort will graduate with a vocational profession, while the OECD average is 45 percent”, said the Saudi Arabian Labor Minister Adel Fakeih on the sixth Global Competitiveness Forum in January 2012 in Riyadh.

This is showing that the education sector in Saudi Arabia, especially the part of vocational education and training, is facing major changes and challenges. By introducing an employment quota system (Nitaqat) for the so called Saudization of the labor market the importance of education and training will also increase.

The Kingdom has to respond to the rapid population growth and associated demographic changes in order to strengthen its own economic power on the one hand and on the other hand to offer the young population a perspective. More than 50% of the Saudi population is younger than 16 years. Every year more than 430,000 school and university graduates are leaving into the labor market. The lack of suitability for the actual needs of the labor market is criticized among graduates of universities and technical training courses. About 50% of the registered unemployed have enjoyed only a school education. The proportion of foreign workers in technical occupations is 95 percent.

The government has counteracted these factors with a comprehensive training program for its local population. The 2012 budget will allocate 45 Billion USD expenditure on education and training, representing 24 percent of the Fiscal Year 2012 and an increase of 13 percent to the previous year. The new budget will be used to implement 742 new school projects (in addition to 2,900 schools currently under construction and more than 900 schools were completed in FY 2011 and rehabilitation of 2,000 existing school buildings). For higher education, the new budget includes the opening of 40 new colleges and completion of on-going projects.

In April 2012 King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al-Saud launched the first phase of university campus projects in different regions and laid the foundation for its second phase worth 21.8 Billion USD. The Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC), responsible for all fields of technical and vocational training in the Kingdom, is running 36 Colleges of Technology, 14 Higher Technical Institutes for Girls and 63 Industrial Vocational Institutes, that are accommodating more than 90,000 students.

In the past year the TVTC was initiating 22 new projects. This trend will continue in 2012. The TVTC plans to invest 400 Mio EUR into new projects. Together with the Human Resources Development Fund and the Ministry of Labor, the TVTC provides the financial basis for the new institutes. By the year 2015 TVTC will create 55 new colleges for additional 150,000 students. The TVTC is therefore very interested in the cooperation with providers of technical and vocational education and training as well as in companies, which are already experienced in building up these institutions.

AHK Saudi Arabia did a market survey in commission of iMOVE (International Marketing of Vocational Education), an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), designed to promote and support the export of German vocational education and training, which was published in February 2012. According to this study, the aim of the Saudi Government is to improve the provision of huge investment programs, the quality of education, to create sufficient capacity and train and hire appropriate teachers.

This results in excellent business opportunities for international education providers, as Saudi-Arabia is dependent on foreign expertise and knowledge. German companies in this area have an excellent reputation in Saudi Arabia.

However, there is a big international competition. The importance of private institutions in the education sector will grow in the Kingdom despite the current dominance of public institutions. In particular, approaches to train-the-trainer courses will meet with increasing interest. Special attention is paid to cooperation with practical relevance, especially with the local industry. Here, foreign partners are required, which do not only sell their products and services, but also engage for a long-term period.

German companies already contribute to the Saudi demand for education. For instance, the German Didacta Association that represents the interests of the education industry, its businesses and organizations, has intensive cooperation with partners in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

In particular the collaboration with the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia led to an exclusive exhibition of German companies at the Sixth Saudi Technical Conference and Exhibition (STCEX) in Riyadh in 2011. Another example of German-Saudi cooperation is the International Services department of the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ IS) that has set up the "Technical Trainers College" (TTC) in the capital of Riyadh. Commissioned by the TVTC the GIZ is responsible for the management, the design of pedagogical concepts and teaching arrangements.

Securing and qualification of skilled work force gain global importance for all economies. They are the basis for productivity, innovation, competitiveness as well as for economic growth, employment and social peace all over the world.

For German companies abroad finding and securing skilled employees is one of the major challenges. For this reason they are seeking solutions to deal with the shortage of qualified workers efficiently.

Regarding this, vocational training is the factor that is fundamental and therefore the demand for Dual Vocational Training "Made in Germany" has risen significantly as it is proven that it qualifies on a high level and fuels the labor market. The combination of theory and practical training on site is appreciated as a big advantage towards systems based only on education in schools. Vocational Training “Made in Germany” has an excellent reputation and is seen as an important advantage for Germany’s competitiveness.

Recent figures prove that German companies are among the world's most competitive companies. More than 60% of the companies employ their trainees immediately after their graduation. Thanks to the Dual Vocational Training youth unemployment stands at 7.9%, which is very low, especially when it is compared to other European countries like France (21.8%), Poland (26.7%), Italy (35.9%) and Spain (51.1%). Additionally, the statewide harmonized content of vocational training ensures that employees can be in-stalled successfully in enterprises of all kind. An industrial mechanic for instance, can likewise work for a major company like Siemens or for a small metallurgical enterprise in the middle of the Thuringian Forest.

Due to the high interest in dual vocational training of German companies abroad and the particular interest by partner countries all over the world the export of education and vocational training by the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), the Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Germany (IHKs) and its representations abroad (AHKs) supports two strategic aspects:

1. The promotion of German foreign business by securing and qualification of skilled work force.
2. Systemic Vocational Training Consultancy services abroad in order to introduce dual vocational training in a partner country.

In this context, IHKs, AHKs and the DIHK are the first contact and competent key partners. Various projects implemented by AHKs prove that the promotion of "vocational training" can be set up and developed as a story of success.

With an experience of more than 30 years the AHK in Portugal is one of the lighthouse projects regarding vocational training. Another story of success is the AHK Shanghai, which has been offering vocational training services for more than ten years. AHK Shanghai is the overall representation of all German education initiatives in China. It consults and assists training companies, promotes the development of partnerships between Chinese official institutions, education providers and companies and has a vocational training committee that is build up according to German standards. Additionally, it is coordinating regional audit committees, which are able to hold examinations.

Especially in regard to the demand of German companies abroad, the DIHK, the IHKs and AHKs are doing huge efforts to satisfy the high interest in the German system of vocational training. Therefore, it is the aim to offer a service package with high recognition value according to the demand of the member companies of an IHK or an AHK. This service will be expanded in quantity and quality and shall be established at AHKs all over the world. For this reason, the term Dual Vocational Training "Made in Germany" has to be jointly defined so that it can be protected as an own brand. This brand could be useful for the qualification of the Saudi youth in order to strengthen the Saudi private sector.