World TVET Database - Country Profiles

1. TVET mission, legislation and national policy or strategy

TVET strategy

In 2012, the government of Lebanon prepared a TVET strategy is composed of four core areas: (1) reviewing and updating the available programmes and specialties in TVET; (2) reviewing academic and administrative structure of TVET; (3) providing and developing human, physical and financial resources; and (4) strengthening partnerships and cooperation in the field of TVET. Each core area is associated with certain projects and action plan.

Core area 1: reviewing and updating the available programmes and specialties in TVET

• Organisation of fields, levels and official diplomas in TVET;
• Adoption of credit hour system for the TVET programmes;
• Creation of a comprehensive system of evaluation;
• Review and updating the offered programmes and specialties in TVET, including classifying and re-distributing them among schools and institutes; and
• Review and development of the existing Curricula to provide proper textbooks

Core area 2: reviewing academic and administrative structure of TVET

• Organisation of the Technical Educational Institute;
• Re-classification of schools and institutes and distribution of specialties;
• Modernising rules and regulations for TVET;
• Organisation of educational, technical and administrative functions of TVET;
• Creation of an equivalence committee for TVET degrees;
• Creation of a national body for quality assurance in TVET;
• Activation the Supreme Council for TVET, which includes corresponding stakeholders (ministries, industrial sector, Business sector, etc.);
• Organisation and activation of short term training programmes including;
• Activation of joint projects and review of rules governing those projects;
• Review licensing and Audit requirements for TVET institutions;
• Modernising the management of educational affairs; and
• Modernising rules and regulations for TVET official exams

Core area 3: providing and developing human, physical and financial resources

• Providing competent human resources for TVET educational staff;
• Filling the vacancies in the administrative and technical positions in the staffing of the Directorate General of TVET;
• Restoration and rehabilitation of technical schools and institutes and providing them with necessary equipment;
• Qualifying and training TVET teachers;
• Investment on resources available in TVET institutions and effectively allocating resources to purposes of education; and
• Enhancing revenues and resources for TVET.

Core area 4: strengthening partnerships and cooperation in the field of TVET

• Promoting the participation of civil society and local authority in supporting and financing of TVET;
• Strengthening partnerships and programmes with the private sector;
• Activating the bilateral and multilateral agreements and cooperation programmes on the local, regional and international levels; and
• Improving of the image of TVET and enhance its status.

TVET legislation

There is a TVET-related legislative framework which is being upgraded according to the current reform action plan.

On the 8th of August, 2012, a new decree concerning the Fields, Levels and the Certificates of Technical and Vocational Education, was issued.

Sources:

New TVET action plan (MEHE-Lebanon) a new decree 5890. Official journal of Lebanon.

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2. TVET formal, non-formal and informal systems

Scheme compiled by UNESCO-UNEVOC from World Data on Education Lebanon VII Ed. 2010/11.

Formal TVET system

The education system in Lebanon consists of 5 cycles:

• Pre-school cycle
• Primary cycle I (EB1, EB2, EB3)
• Primary cycle II (EB4, EB5, EB6)
• Complementary cycle (EB7, EB8, EB9)
• Secondary cycle (secondary, baccalauréat 1, and baccalauréat 2 or final)

At the end of EB9 students sit an official examination to obtain a Brevet Certificate.

In the end of the 3rd year of the secondary cycle students take another official exam in order to obtain a Certificate of General Education.

Students who have successfully completed EB7 level can pursue professional education and after 2 years obtain a Brevet Professionnel (BP Certificate).

Students holding a BP certificate or a Brevet Certificate may continue to technical education and obtain a Baccalauréat Technique (BT) after sitting an official examination.

BT or General Education Certificate grants access to higher technical education. The studies take 2 years and end in the title of Technicien Superieur (TS). Licence Technique (LT) takes one more year of studies and an official examination

The Decree 8590 (This decree is one of the actions taken based on the new strategy)

The Lebanese Technical and Vocational Education is divided into two basic fields: Vocational (Rehabilitation) Education and Technical Education

The 'vocational field' includes professions and trades that require only exclusive information and are described as purely manual; it addresses practical and manual skills. The Vocational Education field is divided into three levels:

1) The Complementary level which ends up in the Vocational Intermediate Level BP (Brevet Professional): The students enrolled at this level must have completed the seventh grade or have got to have the CAP (Certificat d’Aptitude Professionnel)certificate. Programmes at this level last for 2 years.

2) The execution level which leads to the vocational secondary certificate LP (DS - Dual system). It lasts for three years.

The students enrolled at this level must fulfill one of the following conditions:

• Hold the BP Certificate;
• Hold the Brevet Certificate;
• Hold a candidacy card, yet without passing the Brevet examinations; or
• Hold an official sealed school attestation certifying passing the 9th grade for students exempted from taking the official examinations according to the Lebanese curriculum.

Note that the students who have successfully ended the first year of BT can be promoted to the 2nd year of the suitable specialisation in the LP level.

3) The middle level which ends in the Meister degree. Studies at this level have the duration of 2 years. The students wishing to obtain the Meister Degree must have:

• The Vocational Secondary Certificate (LP) – (Dual System) level with at least a two year practical experience;
• The Technical Baccalaureate Certificate with at least three year practical 3 experience; or
• The General Secondary Certificate with at least a five year practical experience.

The 'Technical field' includes professions and specialties to study which not fewer than 9 years of general education (with main focus on mathematics and sciences) should be obtained. The technical Education field is divided into three levels: the Execution Level, the Middle Level and the Higher Level.

1) The Execution Level leading to The Technical Baccalaureate Certificate (BT) and lasting for 3 years. The students enrolled at this level must fulfill one of the following conditions:

• Hold the BP Certificate ;
• Hold the Brevet Certificate;
• Hold a candidacy card, yet without passing the Brevet examinations; or
• Hold an official sealed school attestation certifying passing the 9th grade for students exempted from taking the official examinations according to the Lebanese curriculum.

2) The Middle Level: The Superior Technician Certificate (TS) that takes 2 years to obtain. (The DGVTE will reconsider the Curricula and their contents). The students enrolled at this level must fulfill one of the following conditions:

• Holding the BT Certificate; or
• Holding the General Secondary Certificate.

3) The Higher Technical Level is divided into two paths:

• The Technical Bachelor Certificate (LT): The students holding the Superior Technician Certificate (TS) join this level so as to earn the Technical Bachelor Certificate (LT); It takes 1 year to complete this level. (The DGVTE will reconsider the Curricula and their contents); or
• The Technical Educational Bachelor Certificate: The students holding the General Secondary Certificate or the Technical Baccalaureate join this level so as to earn the Technical Educational Bachelor Certificate (LET). It takes 4 years to obtain the certificate. Programmes at this level aim to prepare Technical Teachers.

Non-formal and informal TVET systems

TVET programmes in Lebanon are offered in both public and private institutions. Private schools absorb the largest number of TVET students. The private sector is divided into schools run by non-profit non-governmental organisations (NP-NGO), and schools operated for profit. Apart from NP-NGOs, TVET programmes provided by the private sector mainly take the form of specialised courses in the service sector since the investment required is lower than that for the courses in the industrial sector.

Most skills are obtained through informal apprenticeships and on-the-job training in small workshops. There are not many programmes offering training for those working in informal enterprises. The most efficient are the training activities organised by the Community Development Centres that are managed by the Ministry of Social Affairs in collaboration with NGOs.

The aim of these centres is to teach basic skills to those with low educational achievements, especially women. NGOs are also involved in skills training. For example an NGO called Mouvement Social has its own training centre and runs a large number of training courses in its social centres throughout the country. The same organisation also administers pre-vocational schools for pupils aged 11 to 14 years old to introduce them to certain occupations as preparation for future skills training.

Entrepreneurship is a very important part of Lebanese career guidance and counselling. The country is making progress in introducing entrepreneurship as a key competence in secondary level vocational education. The main aim is to promote entrepreneurship education policy and support the introduction of the entrepreneurial mindset and skills as key competencies of life learning. This initiative will help to improve the responsiveness of the TVET system to the demands of the labour market.

Currently a pilot study supported by ETF, ILO and UNESCO is being implemented on the level of BT and TS to insert a course on entrepreneurship education in curricula.

Sources:

Action plan of the MEHE.

ETF (2011). Torino Process 2010 Lebanon. Turin: ETF.

Gebran Karam (2006). Vocational and Technical Education in Lebanon. Strategic issues and Challanges. Murdoch: IEJ.

UNESCO-IBE (2011). World Data on Education Lebanon VII Ed. 2010/11. Geneva: UNESCO-IBE.

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3. Governance and financing

Governance

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE) through its Directorate General of Vocational and Technical Education (VTE) – DGVTE - is responsible for TVET in Lebanon. DGVTE administers both public and private TVET providers. The Ministry often cooperates with various NGOs in order to improve the success chances of common projects. This gives the Ministry a chance to expand its educational offer in the TVET sector by involving outside institutions and centres apart from its own.

The Higher Council of VTE (HCVTE) is a consultative body comprised of representatives of government agencies involved in TVET, together with private sector and industry representatives. The Minister of Education acts as the head of the Council.

The TVET sector is strongly influenced by stakeholders and social partners. The former are divided into 2 categories: public and private. Public sector stakeholders include:

• Parliamentary Commission on Education
• The Directorate General of VTE
• The Directorate General of General Education
• The Directorate General of Higher Education
• The Centre for Education Research and Development (CERD)
• The ministry of agriculture
• The Directorate General for Social Affairs (DGSA)
• The National Employment Office (NEO), Ministry of Labour
• The Investment Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL)
• The Council for Development and reconstruction (CDR)

Private sector stakeholders include:

• Non-profit NGOs operating private TVET schools
• For Profit Private TVET schools
• Association of Lebanese Industrialists (ALI)
• Specialised Industry Syndicates
• Chambers of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture (CCIA)
• Professional Groups representing the interests of their members
• Labour Unions
• Private General Education Schools

Representatives of the private sector participate in key government meetings on sector-specific issues. The Association of Lebanese Industrialists has a VTE committee that monitors policy formulations on skills development.

International stakeholders include:

• EU (European Union)
• ETF (European Training Foundation)
• OIF (International Organisation of La Francophonie)
• UNESCO
• ILO (International Labour Organisation)
• IECD (Institut Européen de Coopération et de Développement)
• AFD (Agence Française de Développement)
• GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft Internationale Zusammenarbeit - German association for International Cooperation)

These organisation support the TVET system in Lebanon through financing some reform projects.

Financing

The main source of financing is offered by the state. Some projects are co financed by NGOs, private sector or international donors (GIZ-IECD) .

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4. TVET teachers and trainers

There is a big lack of qualified teachers with practical training. Full-time teachers and trainers account for less than 13% of the total teacher and trainer population in the public TVET sector (ETF, 2011). Most of the contracted teachers and trainers have academic background and need more professional background. Qualification standards for Employment of teachers on temporary contracts shall be improved. Political standing and family ties may play a role in the choice of such teachers.

According to the new action plan of the TVET as shown above, the IPNET will play a main role in the initial training of the TVET teacher as well as for the continuous training for the full time teachers.

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5. Qualifications and qualifications frameworks

Level	Certificate	Field	Pr-requisite
Complementary	BP	Vocational	EB 7 (basic education) completed
Execution	LP (DS) first year	Vocational	BP (passed)/ Brevet (completed)/ EB 9 (basic education) completed/ Official sealed school attestation
Execution	BT	Technical	BP (passed)/ EB 9 (basic education) completed/ EB 9 (basic education) completed + 1BT and PTR/ Official sealed school attestation
Middle	Meister	Vocational	General Education Certificate/ BT/ LP (DS)
Middle	TS	Technical	General Education Certificate/ BT
Higher	LT	Technical	TS
Higher	LET	Technical	General Education Certificate/ BT/ TS/ Engineering Diploma

National Qualifications Framework (NQF)

Currently (September 2012) a project supported by ETF is being elaborated.

Quality assurance

According to the ETF report (2011) there are no quality assurance mechanisms to ensure proper certification of institutions or programmes they offer in either private or public TVET sectors. The procedures for accreditation or licensing private TVET providers are purely administrative and require modernisation. The same applies to the quality control of the public TVET system. The only real quality assurance mechanism in place is the national examination for each qualification. The assessment centres that administer the examinations are regulated and accredited.

Sources:

ETF (2011). Torino Process 2010 Lebanon. Turin: ETF.

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6. Current and ongoing reforms, projects, and challenges

Current reforms and major projects

With the help of external donors a number of projects are in place that aim to reshape and upgrade TVET provision in Lebanon.

The German association for International Cooperation, GIZ, is undertaking a project called “Promotion of the Vocational Training Sector and SME Development” lasting for 7 years (2007-2014). The project acknowledges that the Lebanese economy is affected by increased completion from foreign manufacturers, which makes reconstruction and development more difficult. SMEs take up the biggest part of Lebanese industry and the country’s largest employer. There is a lack of job opportunities for young adults and semi-skilled employees, and the demand for well-trained specialists and middle management is growing.

The project aims to shape cooperative vocational training by boosting joint work of public and private-sector institutions. GIZ works on this programme together with German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Ministry for Education and Higher Education (MEHE) of Lebanon and the Lebanese Federation of the Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture. GIZ’s project is a part of a DSME programme (Dual System, Meister, Small and Medium Enterprises) that is a joint development initiative between the Republic of Lebanon and the Federal Republic of Germany.

Within the scope of the programme, GIZ development workers work in some of the vocational training colleges. GIZ helps Lebanon to implement the dual training system in eight occupations in industries, trades and tourism services. Together with its partners, it also provides training for master tradespersons, currently in four professions. It helps run campaigns to inform young people about the education, training and labour market, and aims to raise their interest and that of employers in vocational training for skilled occupations. Teacher training constitutes another focus, to ensure good training standards in the long term.

Efforts are currently underway to support the GIZ project beyond 2014 by the European Union.

Challenges

For the past two years (since 2010) efforts have been in place to reform the TVET system in Lebanon. A new action plan has been developed (see relevant sections). The TVET system of Lebanon has to overcome a lot of challenges in order to become an efficient system that educates and trains qualified workforce able to contribute to the development of the national economy.

Major challenges are:

• Low attractiveness of TVET among individuals and enterprises;
• Lack of labour market information;
• Mismatch between the output of the TVET system and the skills needs of industries;
• Limited involvement in TVET of businesses at national, sectoral and school levels;
• High inequality between rural and urban areas where rural population (especially females) has low access to TVET;
• Quality of the teaching staff needing more practical experience in order to be able to deliver training of proper quality;
• Insufficient budget;
• Poor provision of work-place training;
• Inadequately equipped schools and training spaces preventing students from acquiring relevant skills; and
• Planning of TVET-related issues is generally left to the public administration and is very centralized with limited contribution of the stakeholders.

Sources:

ETF (2011). Torino Process 2010 Lebanon. Turin: ETF.

Web-page of GIZ, accessed 02 July 2012.

Web-page of DSME programme, accessed 02 July 2012.

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7. Statistical information(*)

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8. Links to UNEVOC centres and TVET institutions

UNEVOC Centres

• National Pedagogical Institute of Technical Education (IPNET)-Bir Hassan (IPNET)
• Directorate General of Technical and Vocational Education, Higher Industrial Technical Institute(HITI)

TVET Institutions

• Ministry of Education and Higher Education/ Directorate General of Vocational and Technical Education
• National Council for Social Services/Social and Technical Institutes

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9. References, bibliography, abbreviations

References

• ETF (2011). Torino Process 2010 Lebanon. Turin: ETF
• Gebran Karam (2006). Vocational and Technical Education in Lebanon. Strategic issues and Challanges. Murdoch: IEJ.
• UNESCO-IBE (2011). World Data on Education Lebanon VII Ed. 2010/11. Geneva: UNESCO-IBE.
• Web-page of DSME programme. http://www.dsme-lb.com/about-us. Accessed: 02.07.2012.
• Web-page of GIZ. http://www.giz.de/static/themen_umleitung/index.html/ Accessed: 02.07.2012.

Abbreviations

ALI - Association of Lebanese Industrialists

BP - Brevet Professionnel

BT - Baccalaureat Technique

CCIA - Chambers of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture

CDR - Council for Development and Reconstruction

CERD - Centre for Education Research and Development

DGSA - Directorate General for Social Affairs

DGVTE - Directorate General of Vocational and Technical Education

DS - Dual System

HCVTE - Higher Council of VTE

IDAL - Investment Development Authority of Lebanon

LET - Licence d’Enseignement Technique

LT - Licence Technique

MEHE - Ministry of Education and Higher Education

NEO - National Employment Office

NP-NGO - Non-profit non-governmental organisations

TS - Technicien Superieur

VTE - Vocational and Technical Education