Zambia to host Industrial Skills Week Africa

Zambia is hosting the first ever Industrial Skills Week Africa (ISWA) which is anchored on aligning skills of Africa’s industrial transformation.

Over 500 delegates from 13 countries on the African continent are expected to attend the event, which will run from September 9-10, 2025 at Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka.

Speaking ahead of the event, Minister of Technology and Science, Felix Mutati, said Zambia will use the opportunity to learn best practices surrounding skills in industries.

Mr Mutati said ISWA reinforces the continent’s commitment to building a competitive, future-ready workforce in line with Zambia’s Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP) and Agenda 2063.

He however, called for a funding mechanism that will match with the desired skills for people working in industries.

And AUDA Director, Symerre Grey-Johnson, disclosed that the event will serve as a continental platform to accelerate dialogue, partnerships and action around the role of skills in powering Africa’s industrial transformation.

Mr Grey-Johnson said equipping Africa’s workforce with the skills is needed in order to drive sustainable industrial growth.

He called on countries on the African continent to prioritise skills development.

The event which will be held under the theme, “Powering Africa’s Industrial Future: Skills for Innovation, Growth, and Sustainability,” is organized by African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA-NEPAD) in partnership with the Zambian Government.

The event seeks to mobilize stakeholders across sectors, to align Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) with Africa’s evolving industrial needs.

The Ministry of Technology and Science, through its implementation agency, Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training (TEVET), is playing a central role in convening stakeholders across the TVET ecosystem, such as industry leaders, government departments, youth networks, and training institutions to showcase their potential at the event.

The two-day event will showcase innovations linking TVET to employment and entrepreneurship, promote labour market intelligence and future skills forecasting, foster youth and women’s participation in industrial transformation as well as elevate Zambia’s leadership in demand-driven for youth-led -skills.