Skills for a Resilient Youth in the Era of COVID-19 and Beyond
World Youth Skills Day 2020 will take place in a challenging context. The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures have led to the worldwide closure of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, threatening the continuity of skills development.
It is estimated that nearly 70% of the world’s learners are affected by school closures across education levels currently. Respondents to a survey of TVET institutions, jointly collected by UNESCO, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, reported that distance training has become the most common way of imparting skills, with considerable difficulties regarding, among others, curricula adaptation, trainee and trainer preparedness, connectivity, or assessment and certification processes.
Prior to the current crisis, young people aged 15-24 were three times more likely than adults to be unemployed and often faced a prolonged school-to-work transition period. In post-COVID-19 societies, as young people are called upon to contribute to the recovery effort, they will need to be equipped with the skills to successfully manage evolving challenges and the resilience to adapt to future disruptions.
Virtual Event, 15 July 2020
The importance of developing skilled youth is at the core of this year’s message for World Youth Skills Day. Several virtual events focused on the theme of “Skills for a Resilient Youth” will take place. On 15 July, join an online panel discussion organized by the Permanent Missions of Portugal and Sri Lanka to the United Nations, together with UNESCO, ILO and the Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth.
Why is World Youth Skills Day important?
Rising youth unemployment is one of the most significant problems facing economies and societies in today’s world, for developed and developing countries alike. The latest Global Employment Trends for Youth 2020: Technology and the future of jobs shows that since 2017, there has been an upward trend in the number of youth not in employment, education or training (NEET).
In 2016 there were 259 million young people classified as NEET – a number that rose to an estimated 267 million in 2019, and is projected to continue climbing to around 273 million in 2021. In terms of percentage, the trend was also slightly up from 21.7% in 2015 to 22.4% in 2020 – implying that the international target to reduce the NEET rate by 2020 will be missed.
Designated by the General assembly in 2014, the World Youth Skills Day is an opportunity for young people, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, and public and private sector stakeholders to acknowledge and celebrate the importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.
What Role Does Technical and Vocational Education and Training Play?
Education and training are central to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda. The vision of the Incheon Declaration: Education 2030 is fully captured by Sustainable Development Goal 4 “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”. Education 2030 devotes considerable attention to technical and vocational skills development, specifically regarding access to affordable quality Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET); the acquisition of technical and vocational skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship; the elimination of gender disparity and ensuring access for the vulnerable. In this context, TVET is expected to address the multiple demands of an economic, social and environmental nature by helping youth and adults develop the skills they need for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship, promoting equitable, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, and supporting transitions to green economies and environmental sustainability.
TVET can equip youth with the skills required to access the world of work, including skills for self-employment. TVET can also improve responsiveness to changing skill-demands by companies and communities, increase productivity and increase wage levels. TVET can reduce access barriers to the world of work, for example through work-based learning, and ensuring that skills gained are recognised and certified. TVET can also offer skills development opportunities for low-skilled people who are under- or unemployed, out of school youth and individuals not in education, employment and training (NEETs).
TVET Youth Stories
As young people continue to showcase their adaptability and resilience at this challenging time, UNESCO-UNEVOC is calling on all TVET youth to submit video stories of how they are coping and continuing to learn during lockdown. These stories will be shared as part of the campaign to mark World Youth Skills Day (WYSD) and highlight the importance of skills development for a resilient youth.Tell us your story!
Did You Know?
- Globally, one in five young people are NEET: Not in Employment, Education or Training. Three out of four of young NEETs are women.
- While the youth population grew by 139 million between 1997 and 2017, the youth labour force shrank by 58.7 million.
- Almost two out of five young workers in emerging and developing economies live on less than US$3.10 a day.
- Prior to current crisis, young people were three times as likely as adults (25 years and older) to be unemployed. Currently, more than 1 in 6 young people are out of work due to COVID-19
- Blending distance learning with practical skills development has proved effective in TVET for more than 100 years.For example, in 1910, in response to an urgent need following a typhoid epidemic, Australia introduced its first distance TVET courses to train health inspectors by correspondence while they worked.
Skills In Action
Photo Competition 2020
UNESCO-UNEVOC invites you to capture amazing moments when skills are in action, showing how TVET and skills development are contributing to encouraging youth employment and entrepreneurship.Due to ongoing closures of schools and training institutions, this year's #SkillsinAction photo competition will be held in September 2020. View the photos of last year.
