Kathmandu, December 19
The Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology has initiated discussions to formulate new laws on technical and vocational courses. These talks aim to replace the existing Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) Act of 1989 with the proposed Technical, Vocational, Education, and Training Bill.
During the discussions held on December 16, the draft of the new bill was examined by representatives, including the joint secretary of the ministry, the law officer, and the official from CTEVT.
In this meeting, CTEVT proposed several recommendations including how the educational qualification of students aspiring to pursue diploma-level technical and professional educational programs should continue to be determined by the Secondary Education Examination (SEE).
Additionally, CTEVT proposed the establishment of provincial councils in each province, with the chairmanship of these councils vested in the Ministry of Social Development or the respective ministers concerned. Furthermore, it was suggested that the member secretary for these provincial councils should be appointed from the central level.
Likewise, CTEVT officials have recommended that the member secretary of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) should hold a special category status. Furthermore, they propose that the council should be headed by the Prime Minister as the chairperson, and there should be a vice chairperson with executive powers.
In the draft of the proposed bill, a provision is included specifying that students must have completed class 12 to enrol in diploma-level programmes such as nursing, pharmacy, and other TEVT courses. It is also outlined that TEVT will be overseen by an official at the joint secretary level.
Sources within the ministry indicate that considerations have been made regarding which provisions from the existing CTEVT Act should be retained in the new draft.
