In Nepal, more than eighty percent learners gain skills through work and experiences. The informal sector is dominant in the nation. If the skills acquired by the work and experiences are accredited through the testing authority, underemployment and underpayment can be addressed and decent employment and gainful income assured. The recognition of the informally learned skill will transform the path for the formal stream. Despite having the benefits of recognition of the prior learning and establishment of testing authority for forty-five years, the number of the informal skills learners appearing for the accreditation is not encouraging. In this context, this paper explains the challenges of the informal skill learners that encounter during the accreditation of their skills through the National Skill Testing Board. I came up with the qualitative research with seven participants, including informal skill learners and testing authority officials. As the informal skill learners explore the lack of information, awareness and orientation of the skill test system, the information provided must be clear, short, user friendly, precise and free from complexity. Similarly, the testing authority and informal skill learners shared that the skill-testing certificates are less valued by the employers during the recruitment.

The engagement of employers in the education system is interpreted on the assumption that it enables a student to enhance the knowledge according to the market demand. This helps to furnish students with skills and knowledge directly relevant to generating employment, familiarize the workplace environment, and reduce the constraints in transitioning from learning to work. The partaking of employers in curriculum preparation not only supports to increase the involvement of employers but also helps to prepare the market-based curriculum. More so, stakeholder participation in TVET curriculum preparation is crucial. However, employer engagement in the curriculum making process, in general, has been a neglected agenda. Against this backdrop, we examined the level of employer engagement in TVET curriculum making process in Nepal. We interviewed 79 individual national employers asking their level of participation in curriculum making process. Among the participants, four were further interacted to understand the reason for minimum participation. The employers, on the one hand, shared that their participation is just for participation to fulfil the requirement provisioned by law. On the other hand, they also said their inputs rarely incorporated in the process even if they had involved in the curriculum design phase. In this sense, the participation of the employer in the curriculum-making process has become cosmetic in practice rather than desired and meaningful.

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The TVET sector faces a number of challenges, including declining enrollment, mismatch between supply and demand, and quality and relevance concerns. These issues may be addressed through a strategic plan that focuses on improving the quality of TVET programs, strengthening the governance and management of the sector, and increasing enrollment and participation. The three-phase 10-year plan in the article paves the path to address these challenges and move the TVET sector in the right direction. The first phase could focus on laying the foundation for a more effective and efficient TVET sector, including investment in infrastructure and technology, development of governance and management systems, and improvement of program quality. The second phase could focus on expanding access to TVET programs and increasing enrollment, while the third phase could focus on consolidating the gains made in the first two phases and making further improvements to the TVET sector. The author of this article conducted a desk review and engaged with various stakeholders to gain a comprehensive understanding of the challenges facing the TVET sector in Nepal. By identifying the current challenges and exploring the way forward through a 10-year plan in three phases, the article contributes to the development of a comprehensive and effective solution for the TVET sector. Overall, the article highlights the importance of a strategic approach to addressing the challenges facing the TVET sector in Nepal. By taking a phased, comprehensive approach, the TVET sector can be developed into a strong and effective source of economic growth and prosperity for the country.

Skilling people is channeled through formal, informal or non-formal education systems in Nepal. Formal education includes structured curriculum and mode of delivery where knowledge and skills are acquired in a hierarchical layer. Non-formal education includes the skill development activities in a less structured patterns, whereas imparting knowledge and skills from generation to generation falls under the category of informal mode of education. Similarly, skills development in formal system includes four different types of programs in Nepal. These are short-term training program, professional development program, secondary level technical and vocational education program (including diploma level program) and technical higher education program. This paper opens discussion on these programs, uncovers issues and challenges and suggests some measures for the improvement of program design and implementation. While preparing the paper, secondary documents are analyzed. In some cases, author's experiences are also used. This article is expected to contribute knowledge to the skill development efforts in Nepal.