These 8 to 12 week courses were tailored to meet the needs of local businesses in cooperation with regional methodological centers (comparable to the German Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training) and employment agencies and were used for the rapid retraining of unemployed Ukrainians, especially women, internally displaced persons and ex-combattants.
The short-term courses were designed to align with the current skilled labor demands of regional job markets, aiming to alleviate the acute shortage of skilled workers caused by the war. High-demand qualifications included training in professions such as electric and gas welders, electrical fitters, auto mechanics, tractor and forklift drivers, as well as sewers and tailors. The practice-oriented implementation - partly at vocational institutions and partly in-company - enabled participants to experience realistic working conditions during their training and to address the private sector's qualification needs effectively.
The project results speak for themselves: Of the nearly 600 people trained, 70% were employed immediately after the courses ended. The high placement rate shows that the demand-oriented qualification measures made a lasting difference for the participants' integration into the labour market.
This project demonstrates that targeted retraining and rapid qualification measures are effective tools for quickly addressing skills shortages and promoting economic recovery in Ukraine. Close collaboration with regional institutions and companies and adapting to local needs were key factors in the success of this initiative.
To ensure the sustainable anchoring and quantification of the achieved successes, a handbook was created within the project as a practical guide for other vocational training institutions to replicate the short-term courses. This handbook provides other vocational institutions, not involved in the project, with information on organising and conducting the courses, particularly in collaboration with the private sector, on the required financial resources, and on facilitating the job placement for course participants.
Additionally, a best practices brochure was created, featuring individual success stories to highlight the project's effectiveness and positive impact. This brochure illustrates the participants' achievements and shows how demand-oriented qualification measures bring about real, lasting changes in people’s lives.
The following link contains a video created as part of the project, offering an insight into the project activities and giving a voice to the involved stakeholders: Increasing employment through short-term qualifications.
