Pearson, the world’s largest education company, has launched new initiatives designed to promote technical and vocational education in Lebanon.

The education company will now provide its Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) and London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Qualifications in Lebanon, through its partner Librairie du Liban Publishers (LDLP), a publisher of dictionaries for the world market, said a statement from Pearson.

LCCI qualifications are among the most highly regarded business-related qualifications covering business, language and finance, and it also offers a wide range of English language assessment capabilities.

Pearson’s globally recognised BTEC programmes are work-related qualifications that allow progression into university with a practical, real-world approach to learning without sacrificing essential subject theory, said the statement

Lebanese training centres will also be able to apply for ‘Pearson Assured Status’ – an independent, internationally recognised sign of an institute’s commitment to providing quality programmes and teaching, it added.

Pearson said its education experts were working with LDLP and training centres to provide training on the new qualifications so as to fully understand and utilise the education company’s international expertise and resources.

The new qualifications are expected to help improve the job prospects of many young Lebanese at a time when the World Bank has put the country’s rate of youth unemployment at 34 per cent.

As per the report only 46 per cent of Lebanon’s working age population are currently employed in paid work.

Education experts have pointed out that reversing existing employment trends will take more than creating new jobs or channelling school leavers into university, with the country experiencing a surplus of degree holders.

Nassim Ershaed, the regional director for Pearson in the Arabian Gulf and Levant, said: “Revitalising the technical and vocational education in Lebanon through new, quality programmes and content, as well as training motivated and knowledgeable educators, will be key to building a highly skilled and enthusiastic workforce.”

“A key way we work to ensure our technical and vocational offerings are responsive to the needs of the workplace is by collaborating closely with employers to develop programmes and content that fulfil the needs of industry,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service