Many countries are trying to improve the relevance, quality and flexibility of their education and training systems, and many of them are looking to qualification frameworks as a tool for bringing about this reform.  Development of national qualification frameworks (NQFs) are also motivated by the emergence of regional frameworks, such as in Europe or in the Caribbean, which aim to help employers and institutions of higher education recognize the equivalency of qualifications earned in different countries. With these goals in mind, the development of NQFs has been widely supported by multilateral and bilateral agencies. However, very little has been documented about the effectiveness of NQFs in bringing about change in skills development systems or about their actual use by employers, workers, and training providers.
In 2009 the ILO’s Skills and Employability Department launched its Qualifications Framework Research Project to study of the implementation and impact of NQFs in developing countries to help fill this knowledge gap and to be able to provide more evidence-based advice to member States. The aim of the symposium is to share the findings of this recently conducted international study on national qualifications frameworks with key actors in this area — from international agencies, bilateral agencies, other UN organizations, and researchers. The research was conducted in 16 countries, through a partnership with the European Training Foundation, as part of our ongoing attempt to contribute to the improving of skills development policies, and the relationships between education and training systems and labour markets. We believe it is the first international study with a focus on impact and implementation.

Experts who have lessons to share from their experience on the implementation process and the impact of NQFs are invited to send a short abstract of a proposed presentation by 20 January. Experts interested in attending the workshop should also send an email to Anne Sullivan by 20 January. As this is a technical workshop for international experts, the ILO is not able to offer financial support to participants.

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