The main flaw in the current Technical Vocational Education and Training system in Pakistan is dearth of market relevant training, as sustainable employment could not be achieved until workers are trained in line with market demands. These views were expressed by speakers at the inauguration of training workshop on Competency Standards Development, organised by ILO Office for Pakistan here on Monday.
Speaking on the occasion, Country Director of the ILO, Francesco d'Ovidio described the centrality of skills development in economic growth and social development, "The Global Employment Agenda (2003) and the ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalisation (2008) highlight skills development as central to improve productivity, job creation and living standard.
Better education and training for young people, workers and entrepreneurs can accelerate the transition to the formal economy and the benefits that globalisation can bring", he added. The National Project Co-ordinator, Farida Khan said that Gender Equality for Decent Employment (GE4DE) aimed at providing skills and employment to 6300 women and men from rural and urban areas of the country.
The initial four-day workshop will be followed up by technical assistance to initiate and complete the process of competency standards development for key economic sectors as part of their work with the ILO. The training is being conducted under the ILO project, promoting GE4DE, funded by the Canadian International Development Agency. The key technical outcome of the workshop is the development of competency standards, which define the exact requirements of the workplace.
These standards will help training providers ensure that the training is high quality and industry demand based. Initially the focus is on competency standards development for textiles and fashion design, hospitality and beauty and personal care. Since these are sectors, which are considered key in terms of Pakistan's economic development and women's employment, the provision of high quality, market relevant training will have a positive impact on gender equality and women's empowerment.
A group of twenty women and men representing public and private sector training authorities including provincial TEVTAs, Vocational Training Institutions, Ministry of Textiles, SamanZar, Benazir Bhutto Youth Skills Development Programme (BBYSDP), Pakistan Readymade Garments Technical Training Institute (PRGTTI), College Of Tourism Hotel Management (COTHM) and others are being trained by the ILO Office for Pakistan on competency standards development.