Applying the G20 Training Strategy in Viet Nam (Phase 2)

Viet Nam to launch Sector Skill Council (SSC) in Agriculture

The purpose of the workshop was to kick-off the establishment of a National Sector Skills Council in the agriculture sector.

Article | Hanoi, Viet Nam | 25 July 2019
25 July 2019, Hanoi, Viet Nam - A consultation workshop to discuss the mandate of the Sector Skill Council piloting in Agriculture was organised in Hanoi by the Directorate of Vocational Education and Training (DVET) with the participation of different stakeholders in Agriculture including the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and representatives of the National Extension Center (NEC), among others. The workshop also benefited from the participation of employers’ and worker´s representatives: Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) as well as other business associations. Development partners implementing Skills Development related Projects in Viet Nam were also present during the event, notable was the participation of the Australian Embassy and GIZ who presented their respective Skills Development governance models.

The purpose of the workshop was to kick-off the establishment of a National Sector Skills Council in the agriculture sector. During the event, participants discussed the definition of SSCs under the Vietnamese context as well its status vis-à-vis the international context, the roles and responsibilities of such governance models were also touched upon; given the specificities of the Sector, the feasibility of an SSC in Agriculture was also discussed and possible challenges were anticipated; moreover the event also represented an opportunity for participants to agree on the purposes, scope, members, operations and sustainability of the council.

As part of the Pilot, the ILO had previously undertaken consultations with tripartite stakeholders towards the establishment of a so-called Environmental Scan for the sector. The Scan aims to provide the SSC with the sufficient information on the state of Skills Development in the sectors towards the launch of its operations as well as inform the development of a Sector Skills Strategy. In this regard, the Environmental Scan and Sectoral Skills Strategy concepts were introduced in great detail to participants to this event.

During the event, participants showed interest on learning more about the key factors that decide the success of the SSC establishment and operation from an international point of view, the membership of SSC, the concrete function of Secretariat among other issues. These discussions highlighted the interest of national stakeholders on the SSC establishment.

During the event the relevance of setting up a mechanism to improve the quality of human resources, and to help on the anticipation of skills needs, including sharing information on recruitment trends and practices, employment and labour market informaiton, skill shortages and the appearance of new occupations was highlighted, this should include policy recommendations on VET and skill development for the government and relevant stakeholders, and is expected to contribute to the development of national occupational standards. The establishment of a SSC is the expected solution for the above current limitations of the Skills Development system in Viet Nam.

At the workshop, Mr Truong Anh Dzung, Deputy General Director of DVET expressed that DVET is focusing on the development of solutions in order to reform its strategy and improve the quality of VET with a more active participation of business. Mr Truong, highlighted that SSCs are among the most breaking-through solution to connect supply and demand for skills together.

"The key point for the SSC mechanism is coordination."

Mr Paul Comyn, the ILO senior specialist in Skill development.
The workshop closed with a commitment from DVET to bring the initiative of SSC in Agriculture to the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs MOLISA for the approval of the pilot model that would be the first step towards policy advocacy on this issue in Viet Nam.