For this fiscal year, CPSC goes hybrid in Nepal to deliver the In-Country Program on Greening TVET for Sustainable Development on April 19-23, 2021. The program was physically attended by 17 participants at the Training Institute for Technical Instruction (TITI) in Sanothimi, Bhaktapur, Nepal and was also broadcasted through U-Tube, Facebook Live and Zoom.

The program was organized with a realization of the need to promote sustainable development initiatives and strategies adopted by governments. In particular, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST), Nepal is currently conducting technical and vocational training programs and projects with the help of employers, institutions and training coordinators to an agreed national competency standards. It is therefore important to establish an efficient mechanism to promote advocacy of greening TVET for sustainable development in various programs being offered by the different TVET providers. This program aims to provide resources, ideas, strategies, etc. to help those involved in the training and development responsibility to meet the learning needs of today and even the future for achieving sustainable development.

Invited special guests during the opening ceremony (left-right): Mr. Pushpa Rahman Wagle, CTEVT Member Secretary; Ms. Akim Shrestra, Director of the CTEVT Technical Division; Mr. Khagendra Prasad Adhikari, Vice Chairperson of CTEVT and Dr. Ramhari Lamichhane, CPSC Director General.

The program was inaugurated by Honorable Minister of Education Science and Technology, Mr. Krishna Gopal Shrestha. Supervising the program were the Director General of the Colombo Plan Staff College (CPSC), Dr. Ramhari Lamichhane and the Member Secretary of the Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT), Dr. Pushpa Rahman Wagle. Coordinating the program via Zoom from India was Prof. Dr. Rajesh P. Khambayat, the Joint Director of the PSS Central Institute of Vocational Education, Bhopal. Other invited resource persons include Prof. Pramod Shrestha, former CPSC Faculty Specialist and currently the Team Leader for the High-Level National Task Force on the National Policy for TVET in Nepal; Mr. Sanyog Bhattarai, CPSC Faculty Specialist; and Ms. Akim Shrestha, Director of the CTEVT Technical Division.

Topics tackled during the 5-day program include: (1) Greening TVET as SDG 2030; (2) Strategies and practical approaches for greening campus; (3) Integrating green skills in TVET curricula; (4) Greening community to ensure entrepreneurship and sustainability; (5) Greening research to respond to sustainable TVET and (6) greening culture to develop institutional commitment.

Tasks such as developing curriculum, metaplanning exercise for evaluating TVET institutions, identifying themes and topics for greening research and evaluating the institution using the green index were also added to further inculcate the theories into practical applications. In addition, an action plan was formulated and presented to ensure the fulfillment of the plans into tangible actions.

In addition, a National Seminar with the same title and focus was held on April 21. The seminar involved a total of 3 speakers namely Dr. Ramhari Lamichhane, Director General of CPSC; Dr. Hari Lamsal, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST ) and Mr. Ujjal Shrestha, Executive Director, Panchakanya Group of Industries. The participants of the seminar were the training participants, Directors of CTEVT divisions, and other officials from CTEVT.

Dr. Rajesh Khambayat delivering the program orientation via Zoom from his hometown in Bhopal, India.
The participants presenting their outputs to their fellow attendees and to Dr. Rajesh via Zoom.

The program also included a visit to the Center for Energy Studies at the Institute of Engineering in Kathmandu to know more about Nepal’s green policies, specifically of the reorientation of its present energy requirements towards a more sustainable option.

Group picture during a visit to the Center for Energy Studies in Institute of Engineering.

Group picture in front of the TITI building

Dr. Khambayat checking the output of the participants presented online.