One of the clear ways to improve the effectiveness of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) systems is by developing partnerships between actors in the public and private spheres, and civil society. But what exactly is a partnership? And in what forms are partnerships most effective? The wide range of national and local contexts shows how complex and multidimensional TVET can be. It is therefore important to clarify the types of partnerships to pursue, the areas in which actors should get involved, as well as their respective roles. In this study, the IIEP-Pôle de Dakar and the IFEF combined their expertise in order to understand the key processes in TVET, and to provide an overview of the different types of partnerships worth considering.