iMOVE participating in 1st German-Indian Government Consultations on VET

Indian Minister of Labour Mallikarjun Kharge and German Minister of Education Professor Dr. Annette Schavan, who are the ministers responsible for vocational education and training (VET) in their respective countries, met on 31 May 2011 at the German-Indian Government Consultations. Both praised the good degree of VET cooperation between the two governments.

Minister Schavan was visibly impressed by the Indian government target of training 500 million Indians by 2022. Minister Kharge once again voiced the high level of interest in German vocational education and training expertise by the Indian government and by Indian trade and industry.

The ministers announced that work on a joint Road Map setting out further cooperation would begin as soon as talks had been concluded.

Ministers welcomed the signing of two agreements

Two agreements on German-Indian cooperation in vocational education and training were also signed during the course of the ministerial meeting.

One agreement was concluded between the Indian educational services provider IL&FS Cluster Initiative Limited (IL&FS) and the Rhine-Main Chamber of Crafts and Trades.

The second agreement reached was between the National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC) and iMOVE. The new President of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB), Professor Dr. Friedrich Hubert Esser, acted as signatory for iMOVE.

iMOVE and NSDC sign a Memorandum of Engagement

The aim of the cooperation agreement between iMOVE and the NSDC is to involve German continuing training providers in the expansion and improvement of Indian vocational education and training. In specific terms, iMOVE will support the NSDC in the initiation of private sector initiatives in the field of vocational training as well as providing assistance with the announcement and setting up of Sector Skills Councils. One particular focus of attention of the cooperation will be the imparting of know-how on training trainers.

The Memorandum of Engagement with the NSDC is the second agreement which iMOVE has concluded with an Indian partner. In October 2010, both iMOVE and the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) each signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Indian Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry FICCI in the presence of the Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma.

IL&FS and the Rhine-Main Chamber of Crafts and Trades sign a cooperation agreement

The cooperation between the Rhine-Main Chamber of Crafts and Trades and the IL&FS is an example of the successful support which iMOVE is able to offer providers. iMOVE helped to set up the cooperation agreement by acting in an intermediary and consultancy capacity.

The IL&FS will establish 100 "Multi-Skill Schools" in India. The aim of these schools is to train unemployed young people from rural areas for jobs in industry. The agreement between the IL&FS and the Rhine-Main Chamber of Crafts and Trades was also signed in the presence of the two ministers.

A VET (vocational education and training) Round Table was staged as part of the German-Indian Government Consultations on 31 May 2011.

Various approaches towards VET cooperation were debated during the course of the discussions held. The export to India of services delivered by German initial and continuing training providers featured strongly.

iMOVE took part in this Round Table event together with representatives from the following institutions:

• the Indian Ministry of Labour (MoL),
• the National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC),
• the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII),
• the Quality Council of India (QCI),
• the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB)
• the German Confederation of Trade Unions and
• a number of Indian and German initial and continuing training providers.

During the meeting, the German delegation was chaired by Kornelia Haugg, a Head of Department at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The Indian side was led by Sharda Prasad, General Director and Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Labour.

Various approaches towards vocational education and training cooperation were debated during the Round Table. The main focus of the discussion centred on educational exports to India by German companies.

The high degree of interest in German VET expertise on the part of the Indians continues unabated and is also a major reason for iMOVE's commitment to the German-Indian Working Group on Vocational Education and Training. Some of the participants of the Round Table had already been involved in iMOVE delegations visiting Germany and India or had attended iMOVE seminars.

One of the areas in which iMOVE had assisted in this regard was the initiation of business contacts between the Rhine-Main Chamber of Crafts and Trades and the Indian educational services provider IL&FS Cluster Initiative Limited. Kornelia Haugg welcomed this cooperation agreement, which had been made possible by the support of iMOVE, singling it out as a good example of German-Indian collaboration.

On the very same day, the NSDC and iMOVE concluded an agreement aimed at continuing to support German initial and continuing training providers seeking initial entry to the Indian market. This agreement sets out an excellent framework for the intensification of cooperation between a range of VET stakeholders.

In his concluding statement, Sharda Prasad praised both the agreement between IL&FS and the Rhine-Main Chamber of Crafts and Trades and the agreement concluded between NSDC and iMOVE. He promoted the Indian educational market by saying "India is a great market, which needs to be opened for the sake of all."

Amit Bhatia, a private Indian educational provider, suggested that Germany should adopt a considerably more aggressive marketing approach for its VET services. This was something which the market was demanding.

Notwithstanding this, German providers needed to develop provision which are in line with local price structures. This could be achieved via "economy of scale", as the mobile telecommunications sector had impressively demonstrated. German providers needed to be prepared accordingly.

Following the conclusion of German-Indian Government Consultations on 31 May 2011, Federal Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel launched the "Germany Year" in India by taking part in an official ceremony in which she joined the Speaker of the Indian Parliament, Meira Kumar, to light a symbolic oil lamp.

The motto of the Germany Year, in which iMOVE is actively involved, is "Germany and India 2011-2012: Infinite Opportunities".

As part of the Germany Year, Germany will be holding presentations in seven major Indian cities between November 2011 and November 2012. iMOVE is planning to be present at the Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) pavilion in order to promote the "Training - Made in Germany" brand in India.

Institutions from the fields of trade and industry, research, science and culture will use the Germany Year to present a multi-faceted image of Germany in India.

The centrepiece of the series of events will be a group of pavilions referred to as "Mobile Space". These pavilions will be erected for a period of ten days in each of the seven largest metropolises in India: Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata and New Delhi.

The "Germany and India Year 2011-2012" project initiators are the German Foreign Office, the Goethe Institute, the Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.