Labour market
29 Jun 2010
Yemen's education system is over-producing university graduates in fields of study which fail to meet the needs of the labour market.
This is because universities are insufficiently in touch with the employer's community. Although some progress is being made in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), labour market relevance remains weak.
Therefore, the MoHESR has set up a Labour Market Committee, in which TVET is also represented. The Committee will formulate a strategy on how to better link education and the labour market. NICHE will support initiatives to strengthen this link.
Lack of health staff in rural areas
The weak link is quite evident in the health sector. Yemen is struggling with a serious lack of staff in the health sector with only 0.3 health workers per 1.000 inhabitants.
In addition, there is a lack of qualified paramedical staff, including midwives and nurses. The situation is particularly critical in Yemen’s rural areas. Qualified and trained paramedical staff are not keen to work in these areas so a strategy is needed on how to incentivate them.
Towards demand-driven joint research programmes
Similarly, education and research in the water sector are not sufficiently geared to labour market demands, such as the type of water experts needed and particular wishes employers may have. Water sector research should become more demand driven through joint research programmes which are:
- rooted in the Yemeni daily practices
- development oriented
- used for policy and strategy formulation
