CII to lead skill delegation to South Korea, Japan to unlock potential of skilled Indian talent on July 31

NEW DELHI: India’s apex and largest industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is leading a hi-level skill delegation of stakeholders to the Republic of Korea and Japan from 31 July to promote skilled Indian talent, facilitate mobility pathways and help forge institutional & industry partnerships as the talent powerhouse to the world India has a lot to offer with 10-12 million youth joining the working age annually, and its demographic dividend presents it with an advantageous position to transform the skilling pipeline and skill its youth who can seek workforce opportunities globally.

On a week-long (July 31-August 5) visit with the mission of unlocking the potential of skilled Indian talent in South Korea and Japan, the CII Skills Delegation comprising senior representatives of the Central & State government agencies, Union Skill Ministry’s skill development arm National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and its Sector Skill Councils (SSCs), recruitment agencies, and CEOs/CHROs from the industry and academicians/institutional heads in Korea and Japan.

The delegation will interact with industry and government officials, local industry associations, TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) institutes, and manufacturing and service companies, among others.

The delegation will reach South Korea on 31 July and remain there for two days till August 1. It will proceed to Japan on August 2 and remain there till August 5. The key highlight of the trip to Japan is the India-Japan Skills Summit 2023, which the Indian Embassy in Japan, is organizing in Tokyo in Tokyo in partnership with CII August 4 at the Indian Embassy premises.

As Sougata Roy Choudhury, Executive Director, Skill Development & Livelihood, Industrial Relations, Affirmative Action, Rural Economy & Migrant Workforce, Confederation of Indian Industry puts it, “Changing demographics are forcing economies to be increasingly dependent on migratory workforce (both nationally and internationally) to maintain economic growth. Some of the countries that have recently emerged as destinations for skilled Indian youth are Korea and Japan. Over the last few years, India–Korea bilateral relations have truly become multidimensional, spurred by a significant convergence of interests, mutual goodwill, and high-level exchanges. From economic collaborations to cultural exchanges, our bilateral ties have grown by leaps and bounds, contributing significantly to the progress and development of both nations.”

While stressing that in recent years, the International mobility of skilled persons has assumed increased importance, reflecting accelerating industrial productivity and economic growth globally, Choudhury said, “We believe India’s demographic dividend can be leveraged to meet the urgent workforce requirements of industries in Korea, particularly Small and Medium Enterprises across sectors, especially agriculture, hospitality, food-processing, manufacturing, shipbuilding, etc.”

While underlining the key objectives of the CII Skill Delegation to Korea and Japan, he said that the idea was to understand the nature of the skilled manpower demand of the Republic of Korea, promote and showcase skilled Indian talent who can fulfill the demand, and also to forge Institutional (G-to-G & G-to-B), and Industry partnerships (B-to-B & G-to-B).

As regards the visit to Japan, Choudhury said that as a large labour migration-sending country, India has signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) with the Government of Japan for the TITP and SSW to advance bilateral cooperation on skills development and transfer, techniques, and knowledge through technical workers who upon return, can contribute to the nation’s overall human capital development.

“The India-Japan Skills Summit 2023 will be attended by the policy makers from both countries, officials handling TITP and SSW, representatives from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), Japan International Trainee & Skilled Worker Cooperation Organization (JITCO), Organization for Technical Intern Training (OTIT) and along with multilateral agencies, Industry leaders and both Sending and Receiving organizations,” he added.

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