Case Study: India. The Role of the Skill Council for Green Jobs (SCGJ) in Recognising Green Skills and Upskilling Workers in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter focuses on the recognition of green skills and upskilling of employees in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) dealing with waste management and renewable energy. In case of India, government pays a special attention to establishing and supporting a renewable energy (RE) sector, thus to contextualise this case study, RE is included in the analysis. It argues that recycling and reduction of waste, reuse of waste water, as well as the reduction of the negative impacts of climate change through renewable energy and energy-efficient devices, are key to all sectors—including catering, automotive and PVC manufacturing. India is one of the youngest nations in the world with more than 62% of its population in the working age group (15–59 years), therefore, to benefit from this demographic dividend, India needs to equip its workforce with employable skills and knowledge for sustainable growth. For the micro-level analysis, the study reported in this chapter was carried out with 47 enterprises. The results demonstrate a potential for recognizing ‘green skills’ that employees acquire non-formally and informally. The reported study was carried out by the Skill Council for Green Jobs (SCGJ), an autonomous body under the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE). SCGJ acts as a bridge between the Government of India and industry sectors in the implementation of skills development programmes considering industry needs and standards and relating them to the National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) levels.