INTRODUCTION

The Government of Malawi through Ministry of Education and Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training, with funding from World Bank would like to implement the Skills for A Vibrant Economy (SAVE) Project. The estimated cost for the proposed project is US$ 100 million and expected duration is 5 years (from 2021 to 2026). The proposed Project is aimed to improve access to market-relevant skills programs in priority areas of the economy, ensuring equity in skills training with empowerment of women and girls and vulnerable youth through targeted skills in priority areas of the economy and  creating a conducive policy environment & strengthening systems and institutional capacity for skills development, which will center on: Technical, Entrepreneurial, and Vocational Education and Training (TEVET) and Higher Education Reforms, Student loans, Industrial links, Digital technology and Safeguards, Capacity Building, and Technical Assistance among other systemic issues.

The Project will help to among others: (i) Increasing equitable access to market relevant skills development programs in priority areas of the economy in public higher education institutions (ii) Increase equitable access and market-relevance to technical and vocational education and training opportunities in priority areas of the economy and (iii) support Tertiary education student financing and system strengthening, project management, M&E and communications.

The Directorate of Open, Distance and e-Learning (DODeL) being one of beneficiary institution to benefit from the SAVE project has initiated a project to create an Ed-Tech hub at its Malawi College of Distance Education Regional Office in Area 3, Lilongwe. The work shall involve the rehabilitation of the existing buildings and extension to create more education technology workshops and office space.

The areas of work include the Teaching and Learning Technologies Studio, Learning Analytics Room, Virtual Science and Virtual Reality/Artificial Intelligence Lab, Research Room, Teachers’ Lounge, Training Room, and an Ed-Tech Maintenance Workshop. The facility will serve as a model education technology center to support teaching and learning best practices, research and innovation aimed at improving open, distance and e-learning (ODeL) in Malawi.

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