Converting experience into a diploma: A step towards realization?
It is possible to turn your experience into a diploma, thanks to the VAE (Validation of Acquired Experience) system. This means that anyone, regardless of age, can apply for a certificate of professional qualification or diploma, based on the skills forged and accumulated throughout their experience in a given field. VAE is another way of gaining access to this qualification, outside the initial training system.
This system exists in Morocco, however, without any specific legal framework. VAE is provided for in the 2018 law on continuing education. However, the texts defining the conditions required, the participants, the financing… are still pending.
An initial experiment was launched in 2008 by the Vocational Training Department. Since then, several operations have been launched, notably in the building and public works, hotel, textile-clothing, agri-food, and automotive sectors.
A new initiative is being launched this year by the Ministry of Economic Inclusion, Small Business, Employment and Skills. Younes Sekkouri’s department has signed new agreements with the crafts sector and professional chambers in four regions. The aim is to facilitate the integration of salaried and non-salaried professionals into the job market. “These agreements will make it possible to certify more than 100 employees per year, between 2023 and 2026”, said the Ministry in a press release. Since its launch, this program has enabled around 1,500 employees in the construction, textile and clothing, meat processing, and craft industries to benefit from skills certification.
Last July, Fatim-Zahra Ammor, Minister of Tourism, Handicrafts, and the Social and Solidarity Economy, launched the “Kafaa” program for validation of acquired experience (VAE). The program aims to certify 7,550 professionals by 2026, with an initial target of 1,100 certifications by 2024. The Kafaaa.ma platform has been launched to collect applications. The program targets a wide range of professions in the tourism sector. It will make it possible to enhance and certify the skills of tourism professionals who have not necessarily followed a traditional academic path.
The absence of specific regulations for VAE is holding back its development. A few private establishments have set up this system. These include the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers (CNAM). This institution is the official representative of Cnam France. Any professional can apply, provided they can demonstrate one year’s full-time professional experience relevant to the target diploma.
Khadija SKALLI
