The Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development coordinates policy, workforce development, technical and vocational education, scholarships and lifelong learning. Its Technical Education Division supports competency-based training, apprenticeships and workplace learning. The Seychelles Qualifications Authority (SQA) regulates the Seychelles National Qualifications Framework, known as the SNQF, and handles provider and programme accreditation, quality assurance and qualification recognition. The Careers and Further Education Agency, established under the 2026 Act, supports career guidance, lifelong learning and access to further education and skills development. Formal upskilling can lead to a nationally recognised certificate, diploma or degree registered within the ten-level SNQF. Accredited short courses can also carry an SNQF level and credit value. Non-formal options include short professional courses, sector-specific refresher training and flexible adult learning. The Seychelles Institute of Distance and Open Learning (SIDOL) operates as an adult learning centre for out-of-school young people and adults. The University of Seychelles Faculty of Lifelong Learning and Professional Development includes a Business Development Centre and a Centre for Open Lifelong Learning and Innovation. Providers also offer continuing professional development, often called CPD, and targeted courses in areas such as maritime safety, first aid, fire safety, security, tourism, health, information technology and education leadership. Workplace learning, employer training, structured placements and apprenticeships can develop skills without following a conventional classroom pathway. Recognition of Prior Learning, or RPL, assesses formal, non-formal and informal learning against an SNQF level. SQA guidance requires at least three years of relevant field experience for RPL. A provider assesses the evidence, and the resulting certificate does not identify it as an RPL certificate. An applicant can seek recognition at any SNQF level and may receive credit toward the full qualification. SQA decisions on RPL can be appealed. Access depends on the programme and provider. A UniSey short-course application can request a national identification number, contact details, employment sector and course-specific information. RPL requires evidence of experience and learning. Foreign-qualification evaluation requires an application form, complete documents and a fee. The Skills Development Programme (SDP), administered through the Ministry of Employment and Human Resource Planning, is an option for unskilled young people and other eligible groups to enter six to eighteen months of on-the-job training. Its public information refers to ages 15 to 30 and requests items such as identification, bank details, a CV or photograph, school evidence or a reference, and sometimes a birth certificate or IGCSE or DELF results. A person generally needs commitment, willingness to learn and a positive work attitude, and full-time employment is excluded. The published age rules are not fully consistent with a Cabinet-approved 2026 reform referring to ages 15 to 20, so eligibility should be checked for the specific intake. SDP participants receive a training allowance under the published schedule: ages 15 to 17 receive SCR 1,600 plus a SCR 300 bus pass, and ages 18 to 20 receive SCR 2,500 plus a SCR 300 bus pass. Cabinet approved reforms on 8 January 2026 that refer to a higher intake, priority sectors, transport within the allowance, outsourced soft-skills training, recognition of prior learning and micro-credentials, but implementation and tariff details are not fully harmonised. Completing the programme leads to a certificate; leaving early leads only to a letter of reference. An employer may take on a participant before completion when performance is good, and a field change may be possible for a valid reason. There is no single national price. Course fees depend on the provider and course, while SQA accreditation, RPL and foreign-qualification recognition use fees set in the applicable schedule. Public support can include scholarships, bursaries and the SDP allowance. Published Seychelles Maritime Academy examples include SCR 800 for a three-day Domestic RF/UP EFA or FPFF course, SCR 1,400 for a six-day STCW RF/UP PPST course and SCR 1,500 for other six-day STCW courses. Fees and durations for UniSey, SIDOL and RPL are not centrally published. The 2026 Revised National Open and Distance Learning Policy promotes inclusive, technology-supported learning and learner support. Its action plan and steering arrangements still require operationalisation. A suitable course should therefore be checked with the provider for accreditation, SNQF level, credits, entry documents, delivery format, duration, fee, assessment, certificate and appeal procedure. Continuing education in this context covers adult learning, CPD, upskilling, reskilling, RPL, workplace learning and open learning; ordinary initial vocational education, ordinary tertiary study and language learning belong to adjacent areas unless they are directly part of one of these pathways.
Upskilling in Seychelles
Upskilling in Seychelles means organised or self-directed learning that updates, deepens or broadens skills, or supports a change in professional direction. Opportunities exist through accredited qualifications, short courses, workplace training, apprenticeships, adult learning and recognition of existing experience. The system is broad but fragmented: no single national course catalogue, fee schedule or application deadline covers all providers.
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