ASEAN ministers of labour and education launch the ASEAN council on vocational education on Wednesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Anh Tuan

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam pledged Vietnam’s commitments in “working closely with partners in implementing the roadmap, turning political commitments into practice, with an aim to creating opportunities for labourers and enterprises towards a prosperous ASEAN Community”.

Addressing the virtual ASEAN high level conference on human resource development for the changing world of work, Vietnamese Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung said developing human resources was the key to improve labour productivity and regional competitiveness in adaptation to a changing world of work.

“Human resource development is the long-term goal and guideline of ASEAN Community’s development as stated in ASEAN Charter,” he said.

“In a rapidly changing world, ASEAN always gives priority to putting people at its core of development because the utmost goal of sustainable growth is for people’s development.”

The minister said Vietnam had selected human resource development as one of ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community’s priorities, making contributions to the development of the ASEAN Economic Community and improving the responsiveness of ASEAN.

The ASEAN Declaration on Human Resource Development for the Changing World of Work was submitted for approval at the 36th ASEAN Summit in June, demonstrating ASEAN’s political commitments at the highest level on the issue. The declaration was the result of work by ASEAN ministries of labour and education and the ASEAN Secretariat.

It combines human resource development with lifelong learning, highlighting that education must ensure no one is left behind and the importance of co-operation between State, enterprises and job training facilities.

ASEAN leaders assigned the ASEAN ministers of labour and education to continue to develop the ASEAN Human Resources Development Roadmap to realise this important declaration through practical actions integrated in the working plans of the ASEAN’s relevant authorised agencies, minister Dung said.

During discussion sessions on Wednesday, ASEAN leaders in labour and educational sectors emphasised high competitiveness in the region, developing high-tech human resources and enhancing resilience to challenges and difficulties.

The ASEAN high level conference on human resource development for the changing world of work saw the attendance of ASEAN leaders in related sectors, representatives of the International Labour Organisation, UNESCO, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany and other international partners.

ASEAN Secretary General Lim Jock Hoi highlighted the necessity of regional commitments on human resource development, especially in the post-pandemic era and the importance of training on vocational skills to ensure job opportunities for labourers in the digital world and improve the quality of the ASEAN labour force.

The ASEAN council on vocational education was launched the same day, aiming to strengthen collaboration between enterprises and industries to improve quality of vocational education in adaptation to the changing labour market.

The council will be in charge of making policy recommendations to improve the quality of vocational education and offering more opportunities for vulnerable groups like the disabled, those living in rural and ethnic minority areas to access vocational training, especially skills in the digital age.

For Vietnam in particular, the Ministry of Education and Training will invest in digital platforms for online training and calling for investment from enterprises in universities, said Pham Quang Hung, head of the ministry’s International Co-operation Department.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs will honour high-skilled workers and propose a specific day on Vietnam’s labour skills.  VNS

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