According to recent research carried out by ILO, enterprises in the agro-processing sector struggle to find a suitable workforce with the appropriate technical and core work skills. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant negative impact on the economy and to find the right skills set is a further challenge. Employers find a lack of non-technical skills in new and existing employees impact on productivity and in the high turnover numbers of entry-level workers costing businesses time and money in recruiting and retraining new staff. The workers themselves are largely unsuccessful in gaining and sustaining decent work as a result.

To address these core skill shortages and gaps in the sector, ILO have developed this Core Skills for the Agro-processing Sector in Ethiopia programme, a short intensive 60-hour modular course, designed to be delivered flexibly to entry level workers already in the agro-processing sector workplace or Trainees that are transitioning from education into the world of work. The programme has been specifically designed to help Trainees prepare for the workplace environment, to know and understand the sector and the expectations of working culture, with the intention of employees being able to hit the ground running when they join an Agro-processing company.