Sectoral approaches to skills development

Skills are a key factor in the economic development of countries and prosperity of nations. Skills matching in a country's regions and sectors depends on various mechanisms, instruments and policies designed to reduce the gap between the supply of and demand for skills in the labour market, thus increasing the employability of the workforce and reducing skills shortages. A sectoral approach considers changing skills needs from the perspective of a particular sector and ensures that skills development meets the needs of the sector concerned. Helping enterprises find workers with the right skills and ensuring that workers acquire the skills they need to find productive employment, is a key to unlocking the door to economic prosperity and building inclusive societies. Sectoral approaches strengthen good practices in skills development by putting emphasis on the skill sets needed in different economic sectors, rather than taking a generic approach to skills development. They also provide an important platform for social dialogue on skills at the sectoral level. Moreover, adopting a sectoral approach to skills development enables countries and businesses to focus on developing the specific skills needed to maintain and improve their key economic sectors, making substantial contributions to improved productivity and competitiveness. OBJECTIVES The overall objective of the training was to help participants better understand the characteristics, methodologies, institutional arrangements, skills governance mechanisms, and sectoral skills development modalities needed for identifying labour market imbalances in terms of skills development at a sectoral level, in addition to recognizing the current and future skills needed at a sectoral level in a broader macroeconomic policy framework. CONTENT Unit 1 Introduction to Sectoral Approaches to Skills Development • Employment and skills development • Rationale for sectoral approaches to skills development Unit 2 Understanding Sectoral Skill Needs • An introduction to skill needs assessments • Skill needs assessments at a sectoral level Unit 3 ILO STED – (Skills for Trade and Economic Diversification) • ILO's STED methodology • STED examples from the field Unit 4 Sectoral Governance and Financing • Sectoral governance in skills systems • Sectoral financing Unit 5 Sector Skills Councils • Sector Skills Councils (SSC): Models, Roles & Responsibilities • Sector Skills Councils (SSC): SSC examples from the field Unit 6 Sectoral approaches to delivery, assessment and certification/ Sectoral reforms • Local, Cluster and Sectoral Innovation • Centres of Excellence ACHIEVEMENT The certificate of Achievement is granted to participants who completed 60% of mandatory activities (looking at the materials, submitting pre- and post-kat) and that submitted all the weekly quizzes (6 in total) with an average grade above 60%. NUMBER OF HOURS: 60