How can VET contribute to economic growth and competitiveness?

Speakers

Damir Šehović, Minister of Education, Montenegro

Tal Lotan, Manufacturers’ Association of Israel

Gabriela Negut, European Commission, Directorate General for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations

Moderator

Anthony Gribben, ETF

Economies around the globe demand a highly-skilled workforce able to support businesses in competing locally and globally.

Demand for a more flexible, innovative, and responsive workforce, is an opportunity for vocational education and training (VET) systems to pay more strategic attention to key competences – digital, entrepreneurship, languages, etc.

Business commitment to skills and innovation is another opportunity, given that it continues to be a brake on both the competitive potential of SMEs and economic growth.

In the wider drive for competitiveness, policy decisions and support must be placed on priority sectors combining skills, R&D and innovation – smart specialisation.

Participants have an opportunity to discuss how policy synergies can reinforce VET’s contribution to competitiveness. And how to better engage social partners, private sector, and civic interest groups through VET to support competitiveness and growth.

Questions

How can VET policies be more effectively integrated within a country’s wider policy drive for competitiveness and growth?

What steps can be taken to ensure VET makes a more strategic input to the internationalisation of SMEs?

What lessons can transition and middle-income economies draw from more advanced economies to ensure VET is a core pillar of a country’s competitiveness drive?