According to persons aware of the matter, Singapore is in talks with India to build industrial training and skilling institutes in India. Skill development was a key pillar of the strategic partnership between the two countries during education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s visit to Singapore in May. Pradhan met finance minister Lawrence Wong and both countries said they aimed to create opportunities for building a future-ready workforce. “During the meeting it was agreed to work together, aiming to create opportunities for lifelong learning, building a future-ready workforce, and making knowledge & skill development a key pillar of strategic partnership", the Indian government said at the time. Training institutes like Singapore’s ITE Education Services (ITEES), which functions under the country’s education ministry, have already provided consultancy and training services to India.
In 2022, ITEES, working with the government of Assam, established the North East Skill Centre (NESC) in the state.“The objective of establishing an NESC is to offer high-quality skills training for the masses, especially the rural youth. In the first phase, NESC will provide training in retail, beauty and wellness, housekeeping and hospitality, and food and beverage services", says the Assam Skill Development Mission, which was set up under the state government. The World Class Skill Centre (WCSC) in Delhi was also set up with technical assistance from Singapore.
India, according to the persons cited above, is interested in bringing more industrial and skilling institutes from Singapore into the country. Such partnerships are expected to help India meet its skilled workforce shortage which may hit 29 million in 2030, according to the International Labour Organization. “The scarcity of high-skilled workers has become pervasive, especially as the quality of VET and higher education delivered often falls short of employers’ expectations. Nearly two-thirds of Indian firms with more than ten employees surveyed in 2014 reported difficulty in finding qualified personnel", according to a 2020 ILO report.
India has also expressed interest in Singapore’s model of integrating skills into education. This came up during Pradhan’s May meeting with top Singaporean ministers. “NEP 2020 is specifically focussing on providing early exposure to vocational education in middle schools, ensuring that market relevance of training as well as building capacity of our institutions to provide technical and vocational education. He (Pradhan) further informed the Government is also working towards integrating skills qualifications framework with higher education qualification framework and investing in developing short-term and long-term training programs to provide skilling, re-skilling, and upskilling opportunities," according to an Indian press release.
