The Need For a Global Conversation on VET

At a time of global disruption, governments around the world are looking to skills and training as critical elements of the economic recovery.

Simultaneously, in New Zealand we are in the early stages of a significant structural reform of our vocational education system.

Never has there been a more important time to engage in the global discussion on training and productivity issues.  Around the world, there is a strong need for networking, knowledge transfer, and capability development across our VET sectors, and between our industries and the VET sector. This will be critical to our collective efforts to train and retrain our workforce, transform the sector, and support effective pathways and transitions to secure sustainable employment for our young people.

In New Zealand, we build from a strong base.  New Zealand has a mature and sophisticated framework for post-school vocational education and training, a national system of quality assured qualifications, and a strong training culture among our employers.

We have also made a very good start in managing the initial wave of the COVID-19 health crisis, but like many countries we face a deep and lasting economic downturn.  Industry and government alike are considering the societal and economic supports that will underpin an effective recovery, including our systems for work-based education and training.

New Zealand seeks to innovate in education, building on our system’s strengths with creativity and fresh thinking to produce adaptability, leadership, and resilience.  As an outward looking, trade-dependent nation, we are also beset by the ‘future of work’ pressures such as technology change, an aging workforce, skills mismatches, and now of course, COVID-19.

As a New Zealand based, vocational education consultancy, we at Skills Consulting Group invite you to engage with us in this conversation and offer our support to help you reform vocational education and training.