A
Remarkable Challenge for Diaspora:
Leveraging
Ethiopia’s TVET Programs for Integrating the
Internal Displaced Persons into Their Ancestral
Homes
Desta,
Asayehgn (Ph.D), Sarlo Distinguished Professor of
Sustainable Development and Quantitative Methods
Abstract
The
1995 Constitution of the Federal Democratic
Republic of Ethiopia was promulgated with the
assumption that the formation of a federal union
in Ethiopia would not only enhance the celebration of
self-rule and shared-rule, but also rekindle
ethnic autonomy, diversity, and inclusion, and
serve as a framework for resolving ethnic
conflict. Nonetheless, due to the lack of the
implementation of effective diversity and
inclusion awareness programs that could have
encouraged open communication and interpersonal
dialogue to build mutual respect, it is
heart-breaking to see that currently Ethiopia
is embroiled in deep inter-ethnic skirmishes. Put
simply, ethnic animosity in Ethiopia has not
drastically altered social structures and
disrupted livelihoods, but it has destroyed
employment opportunities throughout the country. The
regions that were predominantly dominated by
endogenous (native) ethnic groups are resorting to
forcefully chasing away and uprooting the
non-native migrants who have lived and
intermarried with them for several years. It is
sad to see that the non-natives who were
involuntarily settled during the Dergue’s
development-induced displacement (DID) program or
were encouraged by the current regime to undertake
productive investment have become victims and are
ruthlessly uprooted from their homelands and
livelihoods. Given that displacement can be a
terrible and wrenching life experience, the triple
aims of the study were to review the literature
and investigate the impact of displacement on: 1)
the life, health, and social well-being of the
internally displaced persons (IDP); and 2) the
socio-economic, infrastructure, and natural
environment of the host communities. Finally, the
study briefly explored how the existing Technical
and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)
institutions in the Regional State of Tigrai could
be appropriately redesigned and funded by the
diaspora and other philanthropic agencies to
provide the knowledge and skills necessary to
enhance the employment or self-employment capacity
of the internally displaced persons and
successfully integrate and create sustainable
economic development to their ancestral homes.
Conclusion and Policy
implications
Enshrined in the 1995 Ethiopian
Constitution, the formation of the Federal
Republic of Ethiopia guaranteed not only the
formation of regional self-governments to
independently rule themselves but also accentuated
the prominence of self-rule, shared-rule, enhanced
diversity and conflict resolution.
Due to current administrative
obsolescence, lack of dialogue, and effective
implementation of diversity and inclusion
initiatives, the social structures and the
livelihoods of the federal peoples are drastically
disrupted.
Feeling daunted by land grab and
seeing that the natives of some regions were
constantly pushed yonder into the dry peripheral
areas, some of the disenchanted endogenous
(native) ethnic groups are taking the initiative
to organize themselves and have decided to chase
away the non-native migrants who have lived and
remained intermarried with them for many years.
Consequently, the displaced nonnative ethnic
groups who were forced out of their homes or
habitual residences are now found either
squatting, sheltering in, or occupying abandoned
church and mosque compounds. In addition, while
some have crossed border lines to neighboring
countries, the remaining displaced persons have
managed to flee and settle down in their
respective ancestral homes.
The displaced Tegarus don’t
anticipate returning to their places of residence
because they feel that they are disfavored. Their
homes were demolished, and their physical wealth
and livelihoods severely ravaged. Having gone
through these traumatic experience, the internally
displaced Tegarus are reluctant to
return to their domicile places. To balance state
sovereignty with the humanitarian core values (United Nations
1998),
though ad hoc, the Regional State Government of
Tigrai, Ethiopia is in the process of soliciting
concerted assistance from Non-Government
Organizations, philanthropic organizations, and
other volunteers to help the displaced Tegarus settle
down within their ancestral homes.
If the displaced people are to be
part of the diversified workforce, foster
entrepreneurship, and eventually contribute to the
leverage of the local economy and sustainably
settle down in their ancestral homes, the training
centers need to integrate the previous experience
of the displaced people. The study proposes that
the existing TVET institutions need to be
re-oriented and redesigned to systematically
incorporate both supply-oriented and demand-driven
strategies. Furthermore, assuming that if the
professional vocational teachers and trainers are
retrained, they are likely to enjoy training the
displaced learners, and thereby the learners would
be exposed not only to knowledge-based, on-going,
on-campus training but also be trained in on-site
practical internship (Desta, 2017).
To generate competence-based
training, it remains tantamount for the TVET
institutions to integrate the previous experience
of the displaced people and further integrate it
with the theoretical employability knowledge and
practical skills and entrepreneurial capacities to
which would improve the productivity of the
enterprises. In other words, the non-formal
“competency-based training” offered to the
internally displaced persons needs to be relevant
to the labor market, serve the enhancement
capabilities, and make the displaced people
achieve effective, durable and
environmentally-sensitive capabilities necessary
to integrate into their ancestral homes (see
Axmann, Rhoades, and Nordstrum, 2015).
In simple terms, to pursue
sustainable settlement for the displaced persons,
it is axiomatic that the now-existing TVET
institutions in the regional state of Tigrai have
to be revamped to be incubators or serve as
catalytic tools both for the displaced persons and
regional economic development.
That is, the existing TVET curricula need to be
redesigned to be dynamic and accommodate the
previous knowledge, skills, attitudes and
experiences of the displaced persons. The existing
TVET teachers and trainers have to be retrained
and effectively socialized to acquire working
pedagogic knowledge that includes new skills and
approaches.
Given this framework, the most
important policy imperative that could be
suggested is that the current curriculum-centered
TVET institutions in Tigrai need be redesigned to
incorporate the needs of the labor market subject
to creating the possibility of career progression
and continuation of learning. Consequentially, the
output of the reformed TVET would increasingly
become a very important pillar to improve
livelihoods, achieve self-esteem, and accomplish
value-added employment opportunities that would
contribute to personal empowerment relevant to all
the learners.
Compared to general education
programs, financing TVET institutions in Ethiopia
is very expensive. As it stands now, the federal
government is the sole provider of funds for the
TVET institutions. To reform the existing TVET
institutions within the regional state of Tigrai
calls for a diligent search for an alternative
mechanism for financial modality. Underpinning
Atchoarena (2009) and Ziderman’s (2016),
suggestion, the regional state of Tigrai could
diversify the sources of funds for TVET programs
by tapping possible funds from enterprises,
establish within TVET’s income generation from
production or services, and also generate funds
from Ethiopian diasporas.
Concerning enterprise financing,
Ethiopia’s TVET institutions could get fruitful
lessons from the German type of dual training
programs used to finance Germany’s newly
designed TVET institutions. For example, according
to the German Dual Track Model, enterprises
provide the initial financing for the training.
That is, the learners are required to attend TVET
centers for about one-and-a-half days per week,
and the rest of the time is devoted to on-the-job
training with the apprenticeship supervised by
enterprises. To protect the enterprises from
facing poaching, the learners are preconditional
made to sign agreements that they are going to
work for a given number of years and are going to
be compensated at lower wages when they become
full-time workers.
Additionally, to leverage curriculum
reform, the reformed TVET institutions are made to
be market-oriented and at the same time generate
income and diversify their sources of funds by
combining training with production. To bolster
training during the learning process, TVET
institutions can hire, on a part-time basis,
adjunct instructors from the industries to train
the learners to produce goods and services that
could be sold to the local market. Furthermore, as
suggested by Uhder (2017) and Ziderman (2016), to
bolster their financial conditions and generate
income that could be used to finance the training
units, TVET institutions could rent tools and
equipment, and provide consulting services to
local enterprises.
Though the above funding strategies
are viable, the most powerful rallying point of
financial fundraising modalities needed for the
revitalization of TVET institutions
located in the Regional State of Tigrai
TVET could emerge by the Tegaru diasporas
either by soliciting or raising funds from their
communities or philanthropic giving agencies.
However, as suggested by Charities Aid Foundation
of America (CAF), 2017), before attempting to
raise funds, the Tegaru diaspora needs to
know in detail “what causes speak to the
diaspora” and “who the beneficiaries are.”
Following this innovative
theoretical framework, we can propose that the
major aim of the fundraising venture to be
organized by the Ethiopian Tegarus diaspora
needs to be fundamentally revitalizing the TVET
institutions in Tigrai. The underlying purpose of
the funds raised by the Tegaru diasporas is to
rehabilitate and accord employable skills—very
vital for resettling the displaced Tegarus
who unfortunately are now existing on government
handouts and are either temporarily residing with
their ancestry families, sheltering in
over-crowded urban areas, or residing in
peripheral zones. It is to minimize the suffering
of the displaced individuals and establish
sustainable living conditions that we propose that
the existing TVET institutions need to be
reformed. Thereby, for the reformation of the
existing TVETs, donations from philanthropic
giving and contributions from the diaspora
community need to be solicited—subject to
effective accountability and transparency.
In addition, the governing committee
of Tegaru diaspora have to fully realize
that they have to abide by the following
obligations. They have to: 1) develop a good
relationship with the donors by making it clear
that donors are entitled to an income tax
deduction (under Internal Revenue Code Section
170) for their contributions; 2) make donors
confident that their funds will be used for the
revitalization of the TVET project that they
support; and 3) after a gift is made, make sure
that the committee stay connected and are also
given progress reports on project and raised
resources.
In addition to the suggested
fundraising strategies, what is invitingly
challenging is designing ways and means of luring
the Tegaru diaspores to assert a moral
commitment that the diaspores will be returned, at
least once a year, to their revered ancestral
communities of origin and get involved either to
conduct empirical research or learning and sharing
knowledge with the community, and if possible, to
forge practically oriented TVET teaching
methodologies. In tandem with their host
communities and other stockholders, it would be
remarkable if the Tegaru diasporas could
attempt not only to tackle mainstream pedagogical
challenges, but also offer professional
mentorship, and provide networking opportunities
to rekindle their financially supported TVET
institutions and their ripple effect on the
communities.
If
you have the desire to participate in this type of
a remarkable challenging project, I would
appreciate it if you could contact me using the
following address: asayehgn.desta@dominican.edu
References:
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(November 2017). “Diaspora Philanthropy: An
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