A comprehensive framework for rethinking how Vocational Education and Training can reach, include, and empower those left behind
The INNOVET LATAM project, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, proudly announces the publication of its second major result — the Governance Model for Inclusive Vocational Education and Training (VET).
This model offers a new architecture for inclusion, designed to help education systems in Guatemala and Venezuela — and beyond — make inclusion not an optional add-on, but a core principle of governance. Developed collaboratively by European and Latin American experts, the model provides a practical, structured, and evidence-informed framework for policy-makers, institutions, and practitioners who seek to make VET accessible, equitable, and empowering for all learners, especially those facing vulnerability or exclusion.
The INNOVET Inclusive VET Model redefines what it means to govern vocational systems inclusively. It argues that inclusion cannot be achieved through policy rhetoric or infrastructure expansion alone — it must be intentionally designed into the decision-making, coordination, and accountability structures that underpin education and training systems.
In today’s world, VET must respond simultaneously to shifting labour markets, digital transitions, social inequalities, and environmental challenges. The Inclusive Governance Model recognizes that these transformations can either deepen exclusion or serve as opportunities for renewal. Its central premise is clear: inclusive VET is not only a social obligation but a strategic necessity for resilient and competitive societies.
Rather than treating inclusion as a project or a pilot, the model positions it as a whole-system principle — one that requires coherence across education, employment, welfare, and enterprise. The document provides a structured approach, built around five interrelated dimensions, each identifying key governance functions, implementation mechanisms, and examples of real-life practices.
Five Dimensions of Inclusive VET Governance
- Methodologies and Stakeholder Maps for Labour Inclusion – Understanding who is excluded and why, identifying all relevant actors, and using participatory mapping and data to co-design solutions that are rooted in real contexts, not assumptions.
- Processes and Key Elements of the Accreditation System – Transforming accreditation from a gatekeeping mechanism into a lever for equity, recognizing diverse learning paths, and validating informal and non-formal skills.
- Regulations and Empowering Support Schemes for VET–Employment–Welfare Linkages – Creating structural connections between training, employment services, and social protection systems to ensure that inclusion leads to stable, dignified work.
- Processes and Tools for the Accompaniment of People in Vulnerable Situations – Promoting personalized, continuous, and empathetic support throughout learning and transition pathways, turning accompaniment into the backbone of inclusive systems.
- Support Schemes and Tools to Enhance VET–Enterprise Dialogue – Fostering authentic collaboration between education providers and employers so that enterprises become co-authors of inclusive opportunity, not just recipients of skilled labour.
Each dimension of the model is presented in a concise one-page synthesis combining:
- Core components,
- Key features,
- Implementation reflections, and
- Real-life examples of transferable practices drawn from across contexts.
Together, they provide a roadmap for transforming inclusion from principle to practice, equipping stakeholders with the tools to govern change collaboratively and sustainably
The Inclusive Governance Model builds on extensive fieldwork and dialogue among partners from Belgium, Italy, Spain, Guatemala, and Venezuela. It translates comparative analysis, participatory research, and on-the-ground experimentation into a coherent model for systemic reform.
For European partners, it represents a way to extend good practices in quality assurance, stakeholder participation, and recognition of prior learning beyond EU borders. For Latin American partners, it offers a mechanism to localize innovation — embedding global frameworks like EQF, ESCO, and EntreComp into national realities, while reinforcing social inclusion and employability.
As a whole, the model embodies the cooperation ethos of INNOVET LATAM: a commitment to co-design, mutual learning, and long-term institutional capacity building. It is both a strategic guide and a practical instrument that can be used in workshops, policy dialogues, institutional self-assessments, or funding programme design.
The Governance Model for Inclusive VET reminds us that inclusion is not an act of generosity but of responsibility — a shared, cross-sectoral effort requiring courage, creativity, and collaboration. It calls on policy-makers to move beyond fragmented reforms and to embrace systems where VET acts as a driver of dignity, equity, and sustainable development.
As the second key output of the INNOVET LATAM project, this model consolidates the partnership’s commitment to making VET cooperation a transformative force — not only across continents, but within communities. To access the full Governance Model and explore all dimensions, visit: https://www.innovetlatam.com/model.php?lang=EN
