Gender Differential Effects of Technical and Vocational Training: Empirical Evidence for Tanzania

This paper investigates the gender differential effect of technical and vocational educational and training (TVET) in Tanzania using data from the 2014 Integrated Labour Force Survey (ILFS). The multinomial logit model results for employment mobility show that TVET training significantly improves male and female chances of entering into formal employment while reducing their probability of being in informal work, agriculture or unemployed. The effects are much higher for females relative to males for almost all categories of education and training. The results show that although TVET training, and general education, increase male and female earnings significantly, the returns to TVET and general education are substantially higher for females. The decomposed gender earnings gap using Oaxaca and Blinder (1973) method reveals a significant gender earning gap in Tanzania, where males tends to earn significantly higher income (by 58 per cent on average) than females. As TVET and general education increase the probability of females to be in the formal employment more than for males, investing in girls skills training and education helps address the challenge of rising youth unemployment and increasing formal employment. Furthermore, as returns to TVET and general education are higher females, investing in girls’ skills training and education will help address gender earnings inequality