Kerala has the potential to be India’s skilled-labour hub.

The State’s skilled professional workers have been the preferred choice of employers in India as well as other parts of the world. The Government of Kerala recognises that skill training and development play a crucial role in promoting economic growth. A relative abundance of educated and skilled workers, a long history of entrepreneurship, and exposure to the wider world are our strengths. As global manufacturing becomes more automated and knowledge-intensive, Kerala’s strengths with respect to school and higher education make it better equipped than most other States to deal with the new challenge.
The State’s industrial policy and information technology policy envisages rapid increase in investment in different sectors. This calls for the highest levels of skill development and training to be made available to the youth of Kerala for participation in the process of structural transformation of Kerala’s economy.

The “Future of Work” debates and research point out the fast changing nature of work as a result of the development of information and communications technology. Some of the areas in which Kerala has made a start in this respect are robotics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and 3D printing. The Covid-19 pandemic and the evolving situation have added new dimensions to the Future of Work. While disruptions in some sectors are evident, new opportunities and requirements are emerging in significant areas. We must make available the most modern skill  training and development to prepare Kerala’s youth for opportunities in skilled employment in these sectors.

Further, certain sectors such as IT-enabled services, transport, storage and communication, banking and insurance, construction sector, health care and medical equipment, food processing and tourism and hospitality have significant employment possibilities in Kerala. Continuous reskilling programmes are also required.Skill training programmes should also be used as instruments of empowerment and social change. They should include, for instance, specialised training in emerging areas for women and young men and women of the scheduled tribes and scheduled castes.

The international experiences on successful employment policies and strategies indicate the role of the State in developing an integrated skill development policy framework and systems. Such a system recognises the linkages between education – higher secondary and tertiary — and industry and employers’ needs.

The International Labour Organisation in particular has delineated the three areas with respect to skilling, that is, (1) linking training to current labour market needs as well as anticipating and building competencies for the jobs of the future; (2) building quality apprenticeship systems and incorporating core skills into training for young people; and (3) expanding access to employment related training in order to equip women and men to work in the formal economy. These areas are of significance to Kerala. 

The session on skill development will seek to learn from the global best practices in skill
development. The session will focus on the following

 

• Labour Market Information Systems: The current GoK’s State job portal is limited in its scope and reach and hence effectiveness. The International Labour Organization (ILO) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have compiled the global best practices in this regard. 
• Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) : This theme will deal with three issues: (1) the relationship between TVET and the rest of the educational system; (2) the role of industry in TVET; and (3) global trends in occupational changes and TVET.

 

The participants in the sessions will include academics, representatives of international organisations, policy-makers. Further details of specific sessions will be worked out.