TVET Initiatives in Southeast Asian countries in response to increasing labour mobility within the region and beyond

Abstract

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) report (2007) highlights that labour productivity, education and migration play important roles in shaping competitiveness, growth and development in Southeast Asia. The statistics also reveal interesting aspects of labour mobility. Thirteen and a half million migrants originate from countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and this number is continuously increasing. Using primary and secondary data, this paper describes the trend in labour mobility and relevant TVET initiatives in response to the trend at the regional, national and school levels. Some of the ongoing initiatives at the regional and national levels include Regional Skills Recognition and mutual agreements, the progress on the National Qualifications Framework, quality assurance in TVET, and bilateral and multi-lateral agreements. In addition, this paper describes some salient initiatives at the school level in response to labour mobility, such as improvement of programmes and school curriculum, teaching-learning processes, and providing timely job information for graduates of TVET.