The Singapore e-Government Leadership Centre (eGL) at the National University of Singapore’s Institute of Systems Science (NUS-ISS) and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India have come together to collaborate with each other on the skilling initiatives for India’s workforce.
The two parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)to enhance the skills in India’s workforce during India Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Singapore from 31st May to 2nd June 2018.They will work together to develop and implement skill development programmes across emerging technology areas like Data Analytics, Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. They will also cooperate and collaborate further especially in the areas of vocational training on new-age technologies, training of trainers and assessors, and promoting life-long learning.
“NUS-ISS has been playing a key role in Singapore’s skills development initiatives, by delivering continuing education programmes in emerging and critical skills areas including data analytics, cyber security, artificial intelligence and design thinking. This collaboration with NSDC also aligns well with our vision of enabling a digital economy that is always learning and always leading,” said Mr Khoong Chan Meng, CEO of NUS-ISS.
NUS-ISS through its e-Government Leadership Centre will provide advisory to NSDC and industry driven bodies known as Sector Skill Councils (SSCs), and develop strategies for incorporating emerging technologies into existing skill training programmes in India. For job roles in the area of emerging technologies where national occupational standards and courses have yet to be developed, eGL will guide NSDC and SSCs to develop standards, courses and certification opportunities for these job roles. The aim is to equip Indian workforce with Future Skills and secure employment in these emerging areas.
Speaking on the partnership Mr. Manish Kumar, MD &CEO, NSDC said, “NSDC endeavours to work closely with leading institutions like NUS to identify the future of skills and develop the required competencies in India. Currently there is a large demand for new age skills, which serves as a huge opportunity for our youth. I am sure that through this collaboration with NUS-ISS, we would create training opportunities, that could fulfill the aspirations of our youth and help us keep pace with the technological changes in the world.”
In addition, eGL will provide advisory to NSDC to scale up the programme, and train selected trainers on the ‘train-the-trainer’ programmes. It will also capitalise on its expertise in various critical and emerging domains like Data Analytics, Cybersecurity, Tech-enabled Services, Urban Solutions, Finance, Digital Media, Advanced Manufacturing and Entrepreneurship to conduct research in the domain of skills development and emerging technologies for India’s growing workforce.
India’s vision to be the skill capital of the world
Championing the Skill India mission is the Government of India through the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship formed in November 2014. Over the next 3 years, it is estimated that more than 25 million youths will be skilled and certified through various programmes under the Ministry, training Indian youths and professionals on International Standards and develop quality assurance framework.
“The future work place will demand trans-disciplinary skills with emerging technologies enabling digital transformation. We look forward to collaborate with NSDC to develop an experiential learning roadmap, frameworks and content to equip the professionals and leaders with the skills needed to excel in the era of Industrial Revolution 4.0,” added Mr Ashok Kumar, Director of the e-Government Leadership Centre at NUS-ISS.
