The aim of the second phase of the vocational training partnership is to improve employment opportunities for skilled workers in the construction sector and provide construction companies with access to more qualified specialists. In addition to the close cooperation with INTECAP, the Guatemalan Chamber of Construction is also intensively involved in order to design and optimise vocational training in a more demand-oriented way. Targeted public relations work has sensitised both politicians and businesses to the importance of formal qualifications in the construction industry, particularly in the areas of construction safety and construction quality.
Of the original 20 trainers, 15 remain, who have been trained in ‘training of trainers’ courses for all ten jointly developed modules: Masonry construction, formwork construction, reinforced concrete construction, plastering, scaffolding, plant mechanics for sanitary, heating and air conditioning technology, drywall construction, tiling, solar technician and roofing. Specific textbooks have been created for each module. All training programmes are practice-oriented and take place in Intecap's training workshops. The practice-orientated training was not only heavily promoted via social media, but also supported by video demonstrations. The Chamber of Construction also promoted the topic at its events in order to motivate other construction companies to train their own employees.
During the second phase, a total of 1,000 construction workers are to be certified in at least one of the modules (with a course duration of around 80 hours) - a target that is expected to be achieved. One success factor here is an initiative by Intecap, which has called on builders to obtain personal competency certification, a measure that was already very well received in the first phase. For unskilled workers, this kind of certification is often the first formal recognition of their skills, which they can use for their future careers.
