Following the approval by the Cabinet the stage is now set for Kericho National Polytechnic for the full rollout of the Recognition of Prior Knowledge (RPL) Policy which seeks to recognize the informally acquired skills.
The approval is a major win for hundreds of learners who had completed their assessment and were awaiting graduation.
The Secretary General of the Kenya Association of Technical Training Institutes (KATTI) Shadrack Tonui and the Senior Principal of the Kericho National Polytechnic Sammy Cheruiyot, together with the Regional Director in Charge of TVET in charge of Narok, Bomet and Kericho Counties Peter Cheruiyot drummed up support for the initiative that is set to be rolled out.
The TVET director who was speaking at the Kericho Township Training Vocational Centre during a Tea-Belt TVET Conference dubbed from “Field to Cup-An inside Story from Sector Players” said the RPL policy will be helpful to those people who have gained experience informally and need certification.
“In our home setups we utilize the services of mechanics, plumbers and saloonists who learned their skills on an apprentice basis. Challenges arise when they want to get formal employment locally or abroad and that is where the RPL policy comes in handy,” he said.
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He said when the artisans get the certification, they then get more employment opportunities in the tea factories and other firms in the area.
Senior Principal said the institution was the only one in the region which was mandated by the government to offer the certification and added they had embarked on mapping out the trade areas which will be certified.
“Right now we are embarking on a mapping out exercise in our areas to get to know the trade areas which we will be examining and certifying. The certification has been designed not to discourage those who have gained knowledge informally,“ he added.
Cheruiyot noted some of the areas to be certified include tea plucking expertise which will enable the professional pluckers seek for better terms in other tea estates.
The Kericho Poly administrator said the approval of the RPL Policy was part of President William Ruto administration’s Bottom Up-Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) that was geared towards economic turnaround and inclusive growth.
The Recognition of Prior Learning Policy is the bridge to facilitate transition from informality to formality as well as facilitating multi entry/exit between the education system and the labour market.
By Benedict Ngetich
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