Patience Makwele
The government has begun implementing Namibia’s National Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) Policy, bringing together education institutions, employers and state agencies to close the long-standing gap between classroom learning and workplace skills as part of efforts to improve graduate employability.
The implementation phase was launched on Tuesday during the two-day national working session in Okahandja, where officials from government, higher education institutions, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, regulators and industry are meeting to agree on coordination mechanisms, implementation priorities and monitoring systems for the 2026/27 financial year.
The policy, which was officially launched by Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare in March, seeks to create a structured national framework that integrates workplace learning into higher education and vocational training, ensuring graduates acquire practical experience before entering the labour market.
Opening the workshop, deputy executive director Knox Otto Imbuwa delivered opening remarks on behalf of the executive director of education, Erastus Haitengela said the country had moved beyond policy formulation and was now focused on implementation.
“The true measure of this policy will not lie in its adoption but in its tangible impact on our students, our education institutions, our industries and ultimately, the Namibian economy,” Haitengela said.
He said the policy responds directly to the persistent mismatch between skills produced by education institutions and those demanded by employers, while providing a common national framework for workplace learning across universities and TVET institutions.
“In today’s rapidly changing global economy, academic knowledge alone is no longer sufficient. Graduates must possess practical experience, problem-solving abilities, adaptability, digital competencies and the confidence to succeed in increasingly dynamic workplaces,” he said.
Deputy director for TVET Abraham Ndakolute said the policy was developed after concerns from both training institutions and employers over graduates entering the labour market without adequate workplace exposure.
“We have been receiving concerns from training institutions that students struggle to secure practical placements while employers have consistently told us graduates require additional time, effort and financial resources before they become workplace-ready,” Ndakolute said.
He explained that the policy establishes a national coordination mechanism to bring together government, education institutions and industry to ensure learners gain structured workplace experience before completing their studies.
Ndakolute said the implementation workshop will establish a national steering committee responsible for overseeing the rollout of the policy, coordinating stakeholders and monitoring progress.
“The next step is putting in place a clear monitoring and evaluation framework so that we know what will be measured, who will measure it and how implementation will be tracked,” he said.
The government has also introduced incentives aimed at encouraging employers to provide internship and apprenticeship opportunities.
Ndakolute said participating employers can benefit from existing tax rebate measures introduced by the ministry of finance, while companies contributing to the Vocational Education and Training Levy can reclaim part of their contributions if they actively provide workplace training opportunities.
“We do not want employers to feel they are carrying the burden alone. These incentives are designed to ensure businesses also benefit while helping prepare young people for the labour market,” he said.
Haitengela stressed that successful implementation would depend on collaboration between government, employers, organised labour, regulatory bodies, education institutions and development partners.
He said regulatory institutions, including the National Council for Higher Education, Namibia Qualifications Authority, Namibia Training Authority, Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board and Namibia Revenue Agency, would play key roles in ensuring quality assurance, accountability and compliance.
The policy aligns with Vision 2030, the Sixth National Development Plan (NDP6), the Labour Act, the Higher Education Act, the National TVET Policy and the African Union TVET Strategy.
When launching the policy in March, Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare described work-integrated learning as a critical tool for addressing youth unemployment by ensuring graduates leave institutions with both academic qualifications and practical workplace experience.
He urged government institutions, private companies and training providers to expand internship and apprenticeship opportunities, saying closer collaboration between education and industry was essential to producing a skilled workforce capable of driving economic growth and innovation.
Concluding on Wednesday, the workshop policy is expected to create a more coordinated national system for workplace learning, giving students and graduates greater access to internships, apprenticeships and other practical training opportunities while helping employers recruit a workforce with job-ready skills.
