Submit your papersSubmit Now
For Enquiries: [email protected]
IIARD LogoIIARD

Vocational Agricultural Training as a Pathway to Economic Empowerment and Food Security: Lessons from West Africa

Adesoba Modupe Elizabeth Adesoba

Abstract

Formal vocational training is needed to turn farmers and other actors in the agriculture and food system into skilled entrepreneurs who run their farms or businesses as economic and productive sustainable enterprises. This will be essential for farms and companies in the agro- processing sector to sustainably increase the level of productivity and income as well as their competitiveness on domestic and international markets. This study seeks to propose sustainable structures for a dual agriculture and food education system in which encouraged economic empowerment and food security in Sub-Saharan African countries for the U.S. This includes a process of on-going identification of new and future relevant issues like the involvement of the private sector and farms, vocational schools and other educational entities, and relevant public and private organizations. The German dual system, considered one of the success stories of technical and vocational education and training in the world, is suggested as a model which can be adopted and adapted to the U. S. context.

Keywords

Agriculture; Vocational Training; Economic Empowerment; Food Security

References

Aenis, T., & Lixia T. (2016). Vocational Education and Training in the Agrgicultural Sector of Germany and China. Edited by German-Sino Agricultural Center (DSZ). AfDB. (2002). Burkina Faso: Young farmers’ training project – Project performance evaluation report. African Development Bank Group, Abidjan Bailey, N. (1994). Towards a research agenda for public-private partnerships in the 1990s. Local Economy Issues. 12(3), 205 – 219. Bennet, R. & Krebs, G. (1991). Local economic development: Public-private partnership initiation in Britain and Germany. London: Belhaven Press. Brooks, K., Zorya, S., Gautam, A., and A. Goyal. (2013). Agriculture as a sector of opportunity for young people in Africa. Policy Research Working Paper No. 6473. World Bank, Washington, D.C. FAO. (2013). Promoting decent rural employment through FAO’s Integrated Country Approach in Malawi and Tanzania. Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome. Fluitman, F. (2005) Poverty reduction, decent work, and the skills it takes or: towards correcting a partial view of training needs in African development. Conference on Reintegrating education, skills and work in Africa, annual international conference, Centre of African Studies, 27-28 April 2005, reprinted in Beveridge, M., King, K., Palmer, R. and Wedgwood, R. (Eds) Reintegrating education, skills and work in Africa, CAS, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh. Harbison, F.H. (1973). Human resources as the wealth of nations. New York: Oxford University Press. Ibrahim, A. D., Price, A. D. F., & Dainty, A. R. J. (2006). The analysis and allocation of risks in public private partnerships in infrastructure projects in Nigeria. Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, 11(3), 149 – 164. IFPRI. (2013). 2012 global food policy report. International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, D.C. Jones, K. (2013). The role of agricultural technical and vocational education and training in developing countries: A review of literature, issues and recommendations for action. Harrisburg: The Pennsylvania State University/USAID. Maxwell, S. & Conway, T. (2000). Perspectives on partnership. World Bank OED Working Paper No. 6. Available at. [Link]. Maxwell, S. & Riddell. R. (1998). Conditionality or contract: Perspectives on partnership for development. Journal of International Development, 10, 257-268. Okolocha, C. C. (2012). Vocational Technical Education in Nigeria: Challenges and the Way Forward. Business Management Dynamics, 2(6), 1 – 8. Omisore, O. et al (2015). Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN): A Chronological Description of its Functionality in the Aviation Industry. Journal of Good Governance and Sustainable Development in Africa, 2(2), 193 – 202. [Link]. Onah, F.O. (2006). Managing Public Programmes and Projects, Nsukka: Great AP Express Publishers. Pavlova, M. (2014). TVET as an important factor in Country’s Economic Development. SpringerPlus, 3(1), K3. http://doi.org/10.1186/2193-1801-3-S1-K3 Rivera, W. and G.E. Alex. (2008). Human resource development for modernizing the agricultural workforce. Human Resource Development Review 7(4), 374-86. Sasaoka, Y. & Nishimura, M. (2006). Structures of Donor Partnerships: For more effective partnerships. Scoones, I., and J. Thompson. (2011). The politics of seed in Africa’s Green Revolution: Alternative narratives and competing pathways. Institute of Development Studies Bulletin 42(2), 1-23. USAID. (2013d). Value chain image: Features of the value chain approach. United States Agency for International Development. Retrieved from http://microlinks.kdid.org/good- practice-center/valuechain-wiki/features-value-chain-approach. Wildridge, V. et al (2004). How to create successful partnerships—a review of the literature. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 21, 3 – 19. World Bank (1998). Partnership for development: Proposed actions for the World Bank.SecM98-421, May 28.