Public Private Partnership to Improved Professional Education in Ukraine 

The project

The “Public Private Partnership to Improved Professional Education” project is a mandate of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), co-financed by Geberit and Sika, with the overall objective to create better employment and income opportunities for construction professionals graduating from Ukrainian VET schools. It promotes VET as an internationally competitive career choice, by introducing international industry standards and close collaboration with businesses in the framework of the dual VET system.  

The project facilitates the transformation of 18 local VET providers across Ukraine towards active skills development and labour market actors, by improving their education and training programs, establishing sustainable practices for better school management, and building long-term partnerships with private sector companies. A better environment for VET means better skilled graduates, leading to more and better jobs and an increased income.   

The project supports schools with capacity building activities for teachers and school staff, in-school investments, the establishment of sustainable support systems and business platform, etc. Under the project’s support, VET providers are capacitated to undertake activities on their own, thus ensuring the sustainability.  

Project Goals (2020 - 2023)

1. Strengthening training institutes and training young adults in plumbing:
   Making plumbing education internationally competitive, introducing New Ways of Learning and applying international industry standards. Swisscontact helps local training institutions to upgrade their training curricula and teaching methodologies, as well as to structure their management more efficiently while fostering active exchange with local and national plumbing experts.
2. Promoting private sector engagement in VET:
   The project aims at bringing businesses into schools and schools into businesses, by establishing long-term apprenticeships and committed businesses, assuring a truly dual learning approach that meets the needs of businesses.
3. Market development for local skilled plumbers:
   Raising the employability of (former) VET-students in plumbing and jobseekers by making (life-long) learning relevant and attractive and by extending career guidance.

Project Goals (2023 - 2027)

Decentralized education and vocational training system for construction professionals supported by private sector investments enable young people and adults, including particularly vulnerable groups such as war veterans, IDPs and returning migrants, to gain skills tailored to the needs of the market, enter the job market and achieve higher incomes.

• Goal 1: VET system recovery in line with the economic and labour market needs.
• Goal 2: Ensuring that the content and quality of VET are in line with the modern needs of the labor market.
• Goal 3: VET is a prestigious and popular educational trajectory.
• Goal 4: Granting of real financial autonomy to VET institutions.

Project partner

• Geberit
• Sika