According to the 2012 Census, there are around 1.6 million people with disabilities in Sri Lanka and 71% of adults with disabilities are not engaged in any economic activity. People with disabilities often struggle to find employment, or are underemployed, not because they lack talent, but because they lack opportunities.
While historically people with disabilities were mainly enrolled in separate schools for education and vocational training, the latest TVET policies do promote training for persons with disabilities within mainstream vocational training centers. To further improve their participation in NVQ training courses, TVEC adopted a new circular providing guidelines on the provision of reasonable adjustments in NVQ assessment for candidates with disabilities. The guidelines and the associated toolkit make ‘reasonable adjustments’ a reality and create an assessment system that is now focused on demonstration of competency and mastery of skills required to perform occupational requirements determined by industry.
TVET offers an important solution to the higher unemployment rate and lower level of education of persons with disabilities and TVEC is committed towards mobilizing our network of assessors and registered training providers for an effective implementation of the circular and for encouraging people with disabilities to enroll in NVQ courses and appear for assessment with confidence.
The changes introduced by TVEC remove constraints and supports training providers and assessors to assist persons with disabilities through skills recognition.
Reasonable adjustments in assessment – often simple and inexpensive - can then be provided in the workplace so that people with disabilities can deliver their full potential.
