Labour minister Ith Samheng (right) and Tan Wee Pin sign the vocational traning MoU on June 20. MLVT
Singapore (Cambodia) International Academy has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training to provide technical and vocational education and training (TVET), so young Cambodians will be able to meet the demands of the modern job market.
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The signing ceremony, held on June 20, was witnessed by Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Samheng and school principal Tan Wee Pin. The agreement will contribute to the government’s declared goal of providing TVET opportunities to 1.5 million youth, starting from in August.
“The goal of our cooperation – with the labour ministry and the government alike – is to help train employees and youth in vocational skills to increase their ability to meet the needs of the Kingdom’s job market,” said Tan.
He added that his school utilised existing educational programmes from Singapore, so would not need to rewrite its curriculums. The school employs qualified trainers from Singapore.
Samheng noted that the government had instructed the ministry plan vocational training for 1.5 million poor and vulnerable youth, with the government responsible for tuition fees. It will also provide the students with monthly allowances.
“In order to complete the required training, we need additional partners to assist us with the preparation of TVET courses. We signed this MoU in order to allow the Singapore academy to participate in developing the vocational skills of the Kingdom’s youths,” he added.
Collective Union of Movement of Workers president Pav Sina was pleased by the cooperative agreement.
“As Cambodia undergoes the Industry 4.0 revolution, workers in all sectors need to increase their capabilities,” he said.
He explained that learning a clear skill that meets the demands of the job market was an excellent way to secure a decent job, especially in roles where salaries are commensurate with knowledge and abilities.
“Therefore, this training is a great opportunity for those youths who have dropped out of school. It also represents a good opportunity for workers who want to increase their skills and become more competitive in the job market. This will improve their future prospects,” he added.
He warned that students who graduate from TVET courses would still need to practice their skills and work to improve them, otherwise they are likely to end up working in poorly paid unskilled manual labour jobs.
