As a precursor to its Fourth Call for Proposals, the Competency-based Training Fund (CBTF) will host an Information Workshop on Wednesday, June 15, at the Savannah Beach Hotel, Hastings, Christ Church.
The workshop, which runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., is aimed at equipping prospective applicants for funding, namely training providers and employers, with the tools required for submitting a training proposal for this cycle of the competitive funding programme.
Speakers at this workshop will include representatives from the TVET Council, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the Barbados Employers Confederation.
Additionally, there will be a networking/interactive session where participants can liaise with the CBTF technical consultants about utilising their ideas to create better applications.
Among the topics to be covered are: How to submit a superior proposal; Procurement; Building Relationships; and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).
In November 2012, the IDB and the Government of Barbados entered into a loan for the implementation of the Skills for the Future Program (SFTF).
Its overall objective is to support the Barbados Human Resource Development (HRD) Strategy (2011-2016), with an emphasis on improving the quality and relevance of secondary and post-secondary education and the effectiveness of TVET.
The CBTF is part of Component 1 of the SFTF Program. It funds the development of occupational standards within the various employment sectors and encourages the general acceptance of National Vocational Qualifications.
Through partnerships between employers and training institutions, the CBTF facilitates training to enhance an individual’s knowledge and skills in a specific occupational area upon which their competence is assessed.
The CBTF funds competency-based training proposals up to BDS$500,000 each, via a competitive scheme based on fully disclosed selection criteria.
Already, the CBTF has held three Calls for Proposals. These were undertaken in April 2014, September 2014 and March 2015. A total of 106 proposal submissions were received from partnerships of employers and training providers, of which 25 proposals were selected for funding totaling BDS$14 million to benefit approximately 4,000 trainees.
