Sustainable education of the construction sector in Zambia

EcoLusaka (2013-2015) is a capacity building project funded by the Institutional Cooperation Instrument (ICI) under the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland (MFA). During the project the Finnish partner, VTT, will strengthen the capacity of the Zambian partner, Thorn Park Construction Training Centre (TPCTC) based in Lusaka, to provide education on sustainable construction and disseminate the results for wider use in the Zambian construction sector. TPCTC is a vocational training institute registered with the Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training Authority (TEVETA) of Zambia. Its purpose is to educate future workers and also working professionals for the construction sector by providing targeted training courses on artisanal construction skills. The overall objective of EcoLusaka is to increase the supply of qualified workers capable of applying sustainable construction principles in response to the growing demand within the Zambian construction sector. To reach this objective, the main result to be achieved was the development an EcoCurriculum that could be integrated into TPCTC current programme of studies. However, during the project preparation phase it became clear that in order to secure the successful implementation of the Eco Curriculum, the continuation of the actions started during the project and the long-term viability of the impacts of EcoLusaka, a wider strategy was necessary. This paper discusses the main components of the EcoStrategy carried out during EcoLusaka project, as well as a critical evaluation of the outcomes that can be drawn upon by others in further research, training, policy development and project implementation.