News
ADB, Timor-Leste Sign $12 Million Grant For Skills Training
Scoop (ADB) - January 31, 2012. "Government officials and the Director General of the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Pacific Department recently signed a $12 million grant agreement to assist Timor-Leste in introducing and implementing mid-level skills training in the construction and automotive trades."
Asian firms tap Western business schools
New York Times (NDTV) - January 10, 2012. "To sustain the high rate of growth in the emerging markets, there is a sense they need to develop world-class capabilities,” said Harbir Singh, professor of management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
NGOs Improve Teachers’ Skills Online
ADB - December 27, 2011. "Three students are asked what they want to be when they grow up. The first one answered, “I want to be a doctor to help the sick.” “I want to be a scientist to discover new things,” said the second child. Then the third child answered, “I want to be a teacher to help kids become what they want to be.”"
How High-Performing Nations Teach Global Skills
Asia Society - December 2011. "Education specialists have been looking to practices in other countries for quite some time. Many of the questions remain unchanged: What explains the Finland phenomenon? What is it about Singaporean math? And how did Shanghai close the staggering achievement gap?"
ILO launches first global business and disability website
ILO - December 2, 2011. The ILO has taken a major step toward promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workplace with the launch of a pioneering new global knowledge sharing platform linking scores of multinational enterprises and organizations representing employers and networks of people with disabilities.
The MasterCard Foundation pledges US$14.6 million to create “Work4Youth”: Partnership with the ILO Youth Employment Programme
New partnership will increase the global awareness of the challenges facing youth as they move from education to the world of work.
CME reiterates call for skilled migrants as it hits back at Gillard claims
Mining Weekly.com - November 15, 2011. "Australia was facing a skills shortage and not a labour shortage, Western Australian Chamber of Minerals and Energy (CME) CEO Reg Howard-Smith said on Monday as he reiterated a call for a flexible skilled migration programme. The CME chief responded to comments by Prime Minister Julia Gillard over the weekend that the Australian resources sector was not doing enough to employ local communities."
UK based skills specialist Bournville sets up South Asia operations through India
My education times.com - November 8, 2011. "Bournville Training and Consultancy, the training and consultancy arm of the renowned Bournville College of Further Education, Birmingham, UK, announced the commencement of its South Asia operations with India as the primary hub. Through this venture, the company will provide a holistic training programme with globally recognised certifications in Europe, Australia, UAE and South East Asia to Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across the country. Bournville is in talks with various reputed chambers of commerce like CII who have initiated and aligned with national programmes to create and upgrade ITIs. The company is commencing its India operations in collaborations with IT firm Globsyn Group and shipping company Seacom Group. For starters, it will work on the development of six ITIs training around 1,000 people in West Bengal followed by Mumbai and Delhi."
ILO launched “Cash for Work” Project for the flood-affected people in Sindh
ILO "In response to floods in Sindh, ILO has launched “Cash for Work” Project for the flood-affected people in Districts of Badin and Mirpurkhas. Mr. Francesco d’Ovidio, Country Director, ILO office for Pakistan while launching the “Cash for Work for Flood Affected People” project stated, “This project will generate more than 35,000 of person day of employment to the flood affected people”."
The Asia Foundation launches Lanka Corps
Sunday Observer - October 31, 2011. "The Asia Foundation, the premier non-profit, non-governmental organisation working to promote reform, development, equality and prosperity in Asia, today announced the creation of LankaCorps, a new and unique volunteer program for young Sri Lankan expatriates who want to contribute to the dynamic, multi-ethnic nation's post-war recovery in Sri Lanka. U.S. citizens of Sri Lankan heritage between the ages of 21 and 30 are invited to apply for highly competitive six-month fellowships in the public, private, and non-profit sectors to begin April 1, 2012."
East Asian universities fail to deliver workplace skills
The Australian - October 18, 2011. "UNIVERSITIES in East Asia - the region that is the main source of overseas students to Australia - do not provide their graduates with the skills that firms need to increase productivity. "
Tajik, Russian migration services launch joint training projects
Trend - October 15, 2011. "A pilot vocational training project of Tajikistan's Migration Service and Russia's Federal Migration Service (FMS) has been launched at the vocational technical school under the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection in Dushanbe, Asia-Plus reported."
The Skill Gap: Asian Style
Forbes - October 14, 2011. "One of the paradoxes of contemporary business life is that, just as unemployment soars, the number of unfilled vacancies increases. In the USA right now there are over 3 million unfilled jobs, while in countries like Spain, youth unemployment stands at a jaw dropping 47%. The extent of the gap between what employers need and what the labour market provides in terms of skills and talents seems to be continuously widening."
World Bank Urges Education System Tailored To Labor Market Demands
Manila Bulletin - October 14, 2011. "Making the Philippines’ higher educational system more responsive to labor market demands and the economy as a whole will boost the country’s drive for growth and global competitiveness, says a new World Bank East Asia and Pacific Regional Report."
CFA Institute launches Investment career guide for Asia Pacific
IIFL - October 7, 2011. "The CFA Institute announced the launch of CFA Institute Career Guide Asia Pacific, the first comprehensive regional career publication for investment professionals as well as those individuals aspiring to excellence."
Strike balance between child rights and traditional skills: Khurshid
The Hindu - October 6, 2011. "Calling for striking a balance between preserving traditional skills and ensuring protection of rights of the child, Salman Khurshid, the Union Law and Justice Minister, on Thursday said the biggest challenge was to persuade the children involved in traditional skills to join the mainstream without alienating them from family talents."
How to Create More Jobs in South Asia: Less Government
The American - October 3, 2011. A recent World Bank report on South Asia finds that the most significant constraints to business growth in South Asia are poor government policies. Of the top 15 “severe” constraints surveyed firms listed, eight involved dealing with the government. Political instability topped the list, followed by corruption, tax administration, customs laws, government policy uncertainty, macro instability, the courts system, and labor regulations. The World Bank estimates that labor regulations alone cost India 2.8 million new jobs between 1997 and 2007
UN urges action to help disabled women, children in East Timor
ABC Radio Australia - September 22, 2011. A United Nations report released this week says East Timorese women and children with mental disabilities are at high risk from serious human rights violations. The report by the UN mission in East Timor praised the government for taking positive steps to help people with disabilities, but said more urgent action is needed to prevent discrimination and gender-based violence.
Govt to start training academy for construction workers
Times of India - September 21, 2011. "The Kerala government is planning to start a 'Kerala Construction Academy' which will impart short-term training to unskilled workers in the construction industry. Labour minister Shibu Baby John revealed this to The Times of India upon returning from a recent visit to Singapore. The minister is also planning to start the 'Kerala Skills Development Corporation' to train upto 20,000 Plus 2 students every year in different engineering streams based on the educational system in Singapore."
Informal workers feel left out
Bangkok Post - September 11, 2011. Informal workers are calling for equal attention from the government as it implements its 300 baht daily minimum wage policy for workers in the formal sector.