First published in 1999, this book analyzes the process involved in implementing Technical and Vocational Education and Training policies in the countries of Jamaica and The Gambia. A critical approach was used to analyse the role played by different actors in this process, both at public and private sector institutions. The study documented a variety of projects and programmes, ranging from those that promoted entrepreneurship or self-employment amongst young people, to those that were more concerned with providing the skills needed for export-led growth. Overall it highlighted the complexities surrounding implementation and of the importance of donor agencies in financing TVET developments in both countries. Furthermore, it also illustrated how the use of foreign technical assistance and components obtained from the developed world, combined with the influence of the physical and political infrastructure, were the major reasons why projects or programmes failed to achieve their stated objectives. The study concludes by suggesting a model which can be used by policy makers to help ensure that programmes or projects are more successful at meeting local labour market needs, rather than those of aid agencies or actors within the state apparatus.
