Date of Issuance: 08 November 2018
Date and time Expression of Interest (EOI) due: 21 November 2018, No later than 4:00 pm local time
Drop off EOI to Main Office: Finance Division, Ministry of Education and Training, Vuna
Road, Nuku’alofa, Tonga
Email Submission of EOI: Please email to: Manu ‘Akau’ola, manu_akauola@yahoo.com Attn: CEO, Ministry of Education and Training, Vuna Rd, Nuku’alofa, Tonga.
Assignment: Strengthening TVET Provision
Employer: Ministry of Education and Training
Location: Nuku’alofa, Tonga
Duration: This firm contract will require services over 6 – 8 months. Expected Start Date: December 2018
1. Background information on the project
Tonga is a small, archipelagic kingdom in the South Pacific. Tonga’s population of 106,000 is spread out across 36 of its 177 islands with around three-quarters of the population based in the main island of Tongatapu. Other major islands and island groupings include ‘Eua, Ha’apai, Vava’u, and the Niuas. Its location makes Tonga one of the most geographically remote nations from major centers of economic activity in the world. Tonga has a sizeable youth population, which generally face poor labor market outcomes. Over half (56 percent) of the country’s population is 24 years or younger, with a total of about 19,200 Tongans between ages 15 and 24. The potential for economic growth in Tonga is hindered by inherent high cost structures. Over the past two decades, per capita GDP has grown by 1.1 percent, compared to 2.3 percent globally. Given the employment effect of economic growth, this long-term trend has meant domestic job creation has been limited in the Kingdom of Tonga for a sustained period. As a result, a large proportion of youth fail to successfully transition into employment, remaining unemployed or inactive in the labor market well into adulthood.
Tonga is currently preparing a skills and employment project, which will be financed by the World Bank under the IDA 18 cycle. The project will be jointly implemented by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Education and Training, and the Ministry of Finance and National Planning. The project objective is to improve opportunities for secondary school progression and facilitate the transition to jobs in the domestic and overseas labor markets for Tongans.
The SET project consists of four components:
- Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) for Secondary School Enrollment and Attendance
- Strengthening TVET provision
- Enhancing opportunities for labor migration
- Program management, Monitoring and Evaluation
The project will be managed by a Project Management Unit (PMU) located in Tungi Colonade. This PMU will be responsible for the day-to-day implementation, monitoring, and coordination of Components 1, 2, 3 and part of Component 4 of the project. The PMU will report to the World Bank on a semiannual basis on the progress of the project implementation for such components.
The Ministry of Education and Training (MET) now invites eligible consulting firms (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide specific information and past project experience which demonstrates that they have the required qualifications, resources and relevant experience to perform the Services.
This Expression of Interest is for the services required under Component 2 around strengthening technical and vocational education and training (TVET) provision:
2.1 Strengthening TVET quality – provision of grants for up to 8 TVET providers to improve the quality of selected TVET courses so that they will achieve accreditation by Australia or New Zealand or an international accrediting body.
2.2 TVET Student Support Program – targeting the poorest 10% of households in Tonga and offering household members support with course fees and a living allowance (if they have to relocate). Household members who have a recent TVET certificate qualification will also be assisted with English language training and the costs of IELTS assessment.
2.3 Strengthening TVET Governance – designing and implementing an information system to track TVET students and developing proposals to enhance governance in the TVET sector.
1. Objectives of the assignment
The objectives of this assignment are to perform various activities under Component 2 (Strengthening TVET Provision) of the Project. The contracted firm would be expected to hire and train and manage multiple staff that will be based in Nuku’alofa and work within the Ministry of Education and Training (MET) who are part of the Project Management Unit (PMU) located in the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA).