Skills Ecosystem for a Progressive Skills Economy in Bangladesh
Bangladesh has made progress in consolidating its status as a developing country and achieving the SDGs.
To become a developed country by 2041, it is necessary to move from an economy based on cheap labor to an economy based on skills and knowledge. Our national focus and strategies have been set out in the National Priorities and Forward Plan for the Skills Economy by 2041. Ongoing Megaprojects and Economic Zones are among the clear thinking that requires a holistic approach to create many opportunities to promote quality skills.
To amplify and strengthen the skills-based economy, there is no other option than to promote the “skills ecosystem” in each region/division, which requires special attention on both the sector formal and informal skills.
In response to the growth of economic zones, mega-projects, the Rohingya crisis and growing challenges and opportunities due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the skills demand landscape in different regions has changed significantly at scale. and in diversity. However, there is a huge gap between demand and supply of skilled labor to meet the demand, opportunities and potential challenges of planned mega-projects and the growing skills economy.
Each year, about 2.2 million people enter the labor market, but only 1.9% of them receive formal vocational training. Moreover, mismatch of skill mix on different vocational courses and level of training centers with traditional equipment and machinery are other major concerns to meet modern and advanced skill requirements.
Additionally, the lack of regional focus with functional dynamics is a huge gap in skills promotion, especially in terms of quality training opportunities and formal accreditation. The eventual manifestation of these disadvantages, which result in mediocre performance, lack of respect for the recognition of skills, low wages and low retention in employment, is incompatible with the national aspiration.
Key priority economic growth sectors identified by the government have been targeted by the project to improve basic job skills, as well as upskilling the existing workforce, to ensure that the required skills meet industry standards. ‘industry. The priority sectors are: (i) ready-to-wear (RMG) and textiles; (ii) building; (iii) information technology (IT); (iv) light engineering/manufacturing; (v) leather and footwear; and (vi) shipbuilding. Moreover, the demand from some other promising sectors has also increased during the Covid-19 pandemic, such as health, care and other service sectors.
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The planned training targets to meet the skills demand of priority sectors over the next two decades will be around 7.20 million by 2025, 9.75 million by 2030 and 17.14 million by 2041, which will help to reach the ultimate stage and become a “developed country”. . The dream can only be realized through an ecosystem of skills in all parts of Bangladesh, which could be adapted through a structured and coordinated effort among key stakeholders.
To promote the skills ecosystem at the regional level, public and private institutions and enterprises should adopt an integrated approach to functionalize the value chain system. In a skills ecosystem, the coordinated effort between industries, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutes, competent authorities, skills councils and enterprise agencies enables demand to be better met. , challenges and economic opportunities of a region to achieve the common goal. lens, as shown in Figure-1.
The “Higher Regional Body for the Skills Ecosystem” should be led by dynamic leadership, preferably from the industry sector, to strengthen its proactive role and investment to implement the plan for progressive skills promotion with ownership. This would require a policy framework to operationalize the skills ecosystem at the regional level, which would help establish a clear understanding among key stakeholders to define the common goal with shared interest. The framework will guide the creation of an apex body at national and regional levels.
The ecosystem will discover the huge potential of industries in a region to invest their resources to help build the capacity of TVET centers and obtain the required skilled labor through quality training. Also, “On-the-Job Upgrading Training” in the respective industries would add value to leverage skills promotion by providing opportunities to their workforce. This will influence role upgrading, better pay and better workforce retention, which could be driven by the buyer compliance indicator. Similarly, the skills ecosystem would also work closely with buyers to promote “wellbeing at work” as an effective mechanism to influence industries through a compliance indicator for decent employment.
All donor-funded projects should be oriented to promote the skills ecosystem by focusing potential areas according to the interest of the donors and development organizations concerned. An effective mechanism to channel CSR fund from industries and different corporate houses in a region would be one of the potential options to fund innovative projects to promote and strengthen different segments of the skills ecosystem.
Figure 1
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Figure 1
Under the leadership of the apex body, significant investment is essential in terms of mobilizing resources and coordinating efforts among key stakeholders in the following aspects:
1. Capacity building of TVET centres/institutes with the necessary equipment, laboratory facilities and human resources is one of the prerequisites to be achieved through the mapping of regional TVET centres, the prioritization of strengths and assessment of needs. About 90 percent of technical training centers are private out of 3438 centers in Bangladesh, however, strength and quality are a concern.
2. Registration or accreditation of TVET centers by national authority at regional level to streamline quality is necessary; classification of the professional strength of training centers on different sectors would contribute to the quality of production.
3. Demand-driven quality assurance would be one of the main responsibilities of the working group through:
a. Periodic analysis of skills demand through surveys and research to forecast demand and for appropriate planning,
b. Ensure a vocational training program with a renewed Competency Standard (CS) and the required Competency Based Learning Materials (CBLM),
vs. Professional development of human resources as an ongoing process to obtain a competent master trainer and evaluator.
4. Provide quality professional training with certification from an official authority.
5. Industry-based skills improvement intervention would be a primary responsibility of industries in addition to “learning” and “on-the-job training” for ongoing skills promotion.
6. The quality assurance framework should be adopted as one of the main objectives of the regional apex body through significant engagement of experts from BTEB, NSDA, industries and TVET institutes.
Government TVET institutes (i.e. TSCs, TTCs) and TVET institutes run by reputable private organizations such as UCEP Bangladesh, MAWTS, etc. must play a vital role, both in the supreme body and as an implementing agency to promote a coordinated role in the ecosystem.
One of the integral but difficult parts of the skills ecosystem would be the informal skills sector, which has been ignored for years, although 87% of the total industrial contribution to GDP comes from this particular sector in Bangladesh. Moreover, it has played a major role in job creation, which is very valuable from a socio-economic point of view.
The informal sector requires significant investments and a systematic approach in four different aspects. These are: (i) regional orientation and planning of a comprehensive program to promote the value chain system in priority sub-sectors; (ii) expansion of non-formal vocational training opportunities through a standard framework; (iii) formal certification and salary matrix; and (iv) supporting entrepreneurship and business promotion through the active engagement of financial agencies and relevant authorities.
The 21st century is looking for a skilled workforce, preferably with IT and automation skills, not just labor. Therefore, the skills ecosystem would focus on the integration of soft skills as a fundamental requirement for continuous improvement and adopt 4IR related technologies, which would be the center of excellence to deal with a scenario in rapid change in the global skills economy. The latter requires a combination of higher-level skills to enable the workforce to engage in innovation, improve the quality of products and services, and even improve the entire system. of the value chain.
Bangladesh is inclined to bestow all positive efforts for the skills economy where the regional skills ecosystem would play a vital role in helping the young generation to develop as a progressive, productive, responsive and competitive workforce .
Didarul Anam Chowdhury is the Director of Program and Innovations at UCEP Bangladesh.