By Rudra Narayan Sahoo, Mumbai: July 15 is World Youth Skills Day, and a host of programmes and events have been lined up. First, the United Nations is observing the day with a special event on the theme of “Skills Development to Improve Youth Employment.” The event will be facilitated by the UN Envoy on Youth, Ahmad Alhendawi, and will feature opening remarks from the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
UNESCO-UNEVOC has joined the world in celebrating United Nations World Youth Skills Day on 15 July 2016. It will launch a newly adopted UNESCO Strategy for TVET 2016-2021 (technical and vocational education and training). The new mission will guide UNESCO ’s activities with regard to TVET and speed up youth skills development initiatives.
In India the President Mr Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the first edition of India Skills Competition today and also the government of India’s Skill India mission celebrates its first anniversary on the occasion. The shortlisted candidates from India Skills Competition will qualify for the final selection for WorldSkills International Competition at Abu Dhabi, 2017. The mega skills competition organized by the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) will conclude with a closing ceremony on 17th July, 2016.
Major corprate houses based in India have also joined the bandwagon. Skill gaps, which are quite visible across the various industries, need to be addressed with active participation of all stakeholders in the skill landscape. Commenting on the latest trend in the skill gap, Mr. Dinesh Goel, Founder & CEO, Hunarr, in a competitive world, where the presence or lack of even a couple of skills could decide a job seeker’s fate during an interview process, it is essential that the youth realizes the importance of skill training and education within the domain of their choice. Mr. Goel emphasized that youth must strive not only to upgrade their functional knowledge – an in-depth understanding of any particular field – but also their behavioral skills that focus more on personality building and communication, to truly be job ready.
WorldSkills, a prominent international organization in the skill development area, has started a campaign called #SkillsRuleTheWorld, asking supporters to show how they develop and use their skills. 75 countries are celebrating today as World Youth Skills Day.
