Global Partnership Summit 2017: Skill Development Needs to Begin at School Level

NEW DELHI:
Global Partnership Summit (GPS) 2017, organised by the India Center Foundation (ICF), on its first day conducted a panel discussion titled “Can the current education and skilling initiatives empower large demographics and fulfil global demands.”
Opening the panel, Rajesh Agarwal, Joint Secretary and CVO, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship said, “India is a young country, blessed with a favourable demographic dividend where the average age is around 29 years. Skill training is of utmost importance. Population should translate to GDP and economic growth. Several countries have policies regarding migration and our plan is to align India’s certification standards at par with global level. If a construction worker goes to Singapore in search of a job then he should have a certification that is recognised in the country he is migrating to, in this case Singapore. ”
“In order to reap India’s demographic dividend, we need to equip our youth in skill sets of the future and through the National Skill Development Corporation, we are furthering the cause. The industry needs to recognise the value of training and skills. The mindset of the industry needs to shift from low labour cost to high productivity.”, he added.
All panellists equivocally emphasised that we should not wait for students to drop out of schools and colleges in order to skill train him or her, rather skill training should be a part of, and integrated into formal school education. There is a need to train the trainer as well and the Government is taking steps to do that as well.
Though there exist huge skill gaps where many graduates are not industry ready or employable, this scenario can be changed through skill development certification courses and training. The Government has taken several initiatives wherein they are offering students opportunities to hone their skills and also get certificates that validate their skills. India is working closely with countries such as Germany, UK, USA etc to formulate benchmarks and standards in skill certifications.
Speaking on how education in India is not job oriented, one of the panellists said that 90% of the people do not earn a livelihood basis what they have learned in schools and 90% do not learn what they can use in their job. That is where the disparity lies and that is why job focussed skill training is important along with formal education. The dignity of labour is another aspect that needs is to be addressed.