High quality vocational training in Ukraine

Despite the Russian war in Ukraine, the project team still achieved impressive success: It lay the foundation for quality vocational education of plumbers, and completely on the Swiss model.

Around 20 percent of young people in Ukraine are unemployed. The main problem is that there is no coordination between the education system and the labour market.

This is where the EdUP project comes in: among other things, it fosters close collaboration with companies within the dual, apprenticeship-based vocational education system. Furthermore, it helps educational institutions and implements international industrial standards.

Thus, it strengthens international competitiveness of vocational education while also improving employment and income-generation opportunities for plumbers across the country.

This is made possible through Swisscontact’s collaboration with Geberit and Sika, two private sector companies.

Swisscontact frequently partners with the private sector. Such partnerships enhance the impact and sustainability of interventions, because the activities of participating companies are based on specific business sectors. The interventions can be extended to other business areas, thereby producing comprehensive, long-term effects.

Thanks to close collaboration with the Swiss Private Sector, student trainees in Ukraine are learning the latest technologies in the sanitation sector. The company actively participates in designing the EdUP project. It provides its network and sectoral knowledge to the project team and takes on a leading role in training the teachers. Additionally, Geberit’s interactive teaching software is an excellent source of digital learning materials.

The local companies also benefit from the availability of trained plumbers who know Geberit and SIKA products and tools and will continue to use these in the future.