A JOINT INITIATIVE OF ILO, UNIDO AND HUMANA PEOPLE TO PEOPLE
African Skills
Hubs Competition
Coming soon
Applications open early December 2026
Be among the first to know when the Competition opens.
We'll let you know as soon as the guidelines and application form are available. Dates will be confirmed here.
A continental search for
Skills Hubs that work
The African Skills Hubs Competition is a joint initiative of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Humana People to People, with the financial support of the Humana People to People Education & Training Foundation.
Across Africa, Skills Hubs are connecting training with industry, research and local economies, and accompanying the people they train into work and enterprise. Many of these models work well and are known only where they operate.
We are calling for Skills Hubs that are driving rural transformation and Skills Hubs that are driving the green and just transition — models already in operation, with results to show for them.
Two will be selected, one in each category, and what they do will be shared across the continent.
What is a Skills Hub?
A centre of expertise that provides relevant, inclusive and demand-driven skills development and connects it to the wider skills ecosystem: training institutions, enterprises, the private sector, employers organizations, employment services, research and innovation, workers and their organizations, and learners. It also mentors and accompanies the people it trains, beyond the training itself.
A Skills Hub can build on a TVET institution, centre of excellence, university, research centre or industry organisation. What matters is the role it plays in connecting skills development with industry, employment, innovation and sustainable economic development.
Skills Hubs for rural transformation
Hubs connecting skills development with employment, enterprise, value chains and local economic opportunity in rural and underserved areas.
Skills Hubs for the green and just transition
Hubs preparing workers, enterprises and communities for green and digital technologies, changing occupations and climate-resilient production.
Open to institutions across Africa that host or co-manage a Skills Hub. Full eligibility and guidelines will be published when the Competition opens.
Why take part
Is your Skills Hub making a difference in skills development in your community? Share your experience, showcase your approach and inspire similar initiatives across Africa. Selected Hubs will receive funding, international visibility and the opportunity to present their work at Africa Skills Week 2027.
USD 5,000 to strengthen your Hub
Use the funding where it can make the greatest difference: expand activities, reach more learners and enterprises, or strengthen and document your model.
A platform at Africa Skills Week 2027
Present your Hub to policymakers, donors, industry representatives and training institutions shaping the future of skills development in Africa. Travel will be sponsored.
International recognition
Have your model featured in a joint publication by ILO, UNIDO and Humana People to People, and shared through their networks across Africa and beyond.
A place in the network
Selected Hubs help shape an emerging Pan-African network of Skills Hubs: peers to learn from, and peers who can find you.
Have any further questions?
Contact us at africaskillshubs@hpp-et.org.