Constructing a Vocational and Educational Training System in Peru Drawing from Successful Cases in the Asia-Pacific region

Abstract

Peru currently has a fragmented and incomplete approach to Vocational and Educational Training (VET). This presents a problem for the country’s growing demand for skilled human capital, especially the skills requirements needed to foster Small and Medium Enterprises’ (SMEs) productivity. In a context where trends such as globalization, competitiveness, and scientific and technological advances are setting big challenges to developing countries, it might be relevant that Peru gazes on best practices of those countries that have implemented recent reforms in their VET systems. This research uses a systematic approach to review the international literature on the design of VET policies and systems to discover the aspects which could be of use to Peru’s next steps in the development of its VET system. It drew on the most relevant VET systems across Asia-Pacific countries, such as New Zealand, Australia, and Canada, to identify trends and define criteria to analyse the current VET system. Policy transfer frameworks are used to draw from these systems those characteristics most needed. Some of the most important policies that the Peruvian VET system might consider are to reduce the fragmentation of current VET system by bringing all the targeted programs that the Peruvian government is carrying out at present into a more integrated whole of government approach, the reform of formal provision of technical education at secondary and tertiary level that stress the transferability of degrees across the Asia-Pacific region, and the creation of a training system according to requirements of the labour market and socio-cultural characteristics of students.