African Occupational  Standards Development  Framework (AOSDF)

Harmonising Competency Standards for Sectoral Transformation

The African Occupational Standards Development Framework is designed to close the gap between the qualifications people hold and the occupations available in the labour market. It responds to Africa’s growing need for skills alignment, labour market intelligence, and workforce mobility.

Launched in 2022 by AUDA-NEPAD in partnership with Afreximbank at the 77th United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Objectives

African Occupational Standards Development Framework aims to:

Strengthen the alignment of skills with economic opportunity, using occupational standards to define what skills and competencies are needed for specific jobs

Support labour mobility across borders and sectors by developing shared, validated occupational benchmarks.

Inform curricula, qualifications, and assessments across education and training systems.

Promote youth employability, productivity, and entrepreneurship by focusing on real-world occupational needs.

Build sector-focused and occupation-driven skills frameworks to support the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and other development priorities.