Cambodia links skills to decent work through a new graduate tracer study
What happens after graduates complete vocational training? Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (MLVT), with support from the International Labour Organization (ILO), is developing and piloting a tracer study to find out. Focusing on graduates of the TVET 1.5 Million Programme, the study will examine how well technical and vocational education and training equips learners with skills that support sustainable economic growth and helps young people and working adults find decent work and improve their livelihoods.
A recent workshop marked the first ILO training on tracer study methodology under this initiative for the Ministry’s Directorate-General for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (DG-TVET) and Labour Market Information (LMI) Unit. The two teams worked with ILO specialists and representatives from the Industrial Technical Institute (ITI) and the National Polytechnic Institute of Cambodia (NPIC) to co-design the pilot. The ILO will continue to support both teams as they develop and test the methodology, analyse the findings and use them to inform programme decisions. The workshop marked the first stage of a programme to build the Ministry’s capacity to conduct tracer studies and track graduate outcomes regularly.
A key point from the workshop was that tracking whether graduates find work tells only part of the story. The pilot will also look at the quality of their jobs, whether they use the skills they learned and whether they have access to social protection. By examining how outcomes vary by age, socioeconomic background, gender and disability, the study will help the Ministry understand how well the programme serves learners from poor and vulnerable households, women and learners with disabilities.
A visit to ITI brought learners’ perspectives into the discussion. Students shared how vocational training is helping them improve their livelihoods, illustrating why it matters to follow their progress after graduation.
The initiative is supported by the ILO’s core resources and by the Republic of Korea-funded ILO project Delivering on national commitments: Korea’s support to the implementation of the Global Accelerator, under the Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions.
