During a recent visit to Australia the Hon. Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh, Dr Raman Singh and his team have signed an MOU with the Queensland Skills & Education Consortium, to work across a range of skilling initiatives in the state.
The signing was attended by the Hon. Chief Minister himself, Secretary of Government of Chhattisgarh, Dr Kamalpreet Singh, members of QSEC and other businesses from around Australia.
Chhattisgarh is the first State in India to have provided ‘skill development’ as a right for the local youth, with the CM of the state playing an active role in all skill development initiatives by chairing the State Skill Development Authority (CSSDA). This has to lead to CSSDA being one of the few skill development bodies in India currently exceeding targets on all fronts.
QSEC recently began working with the Chhattisgarh State Government this month, delivering a capacity building project in partnership with the Commonwealth Education and Media Centre for Asia. The project focuses on enhancing the level of industry participation in the skills ecosystem along with developing a cadre of trainers with the ability to translate these industry learnings to students studying in government-affiliated institutes.
In addition to this project, the QSEC will work with the Chhattisgarh Government to positively affect the growth of vocational skills in the state across industries such as Mining, Construction, Automotive, Engineering & Automation and Hospitality & Tourism. The collaboration will look to upgrade skilling qualifications, enhance the training role, develop faculty exchange programs and establish Centres of Excellence in the state to embed Australian standards into training programs.
The signing was made possible with the assistance of the Australia India Business Council (AIBC), a national membership organisation established in 1986, to foster bilateral relations between the two countries. Today AIBC maintains active chapters in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra nurturing close relationships with federal and state government agencies.
“QSEC is delighted to work with the Government of Chhattisgarh. The state has become a powerhouse for skill development in the country, we hope to be able to take it to the next level, developing a greater level of industry participation and establishing more international linkages back into the state” said Sam Freeman, head of QSEC in India.
