ASTANA, March 14, 2016 — Today, the World Bank and the Ministry of Healthcare and Social Development officially launched the Kazakhstan Skills and Jobs Project aimed at improving employment outcomes and skills of those in need of training.
The event was attended by representatives of the World Bank, the Ministries of Healthcare and Social Development, Education, Finance, National Chamber of Entrepreneurs "Atameken" and the Federation of Trade Unions of Kazakhstan.
“This project reflects Kazakhstan’s increasing shift towards a knowledge based economy. And it is an important recognition that human capital and the skills of people of Kazakhstan will be the drivers of growth and competitiveness of the national economy”, said at the opening ceremony Claudia Costin, Sr. Director for the Education Global Practice at the World Bank.
The Skills and Jobs Project will provide relevant training to unemployed, unproductively self-employed, and current employees in need of training. The Project aims to improve the public employment services, and enhance the capacity of training centers and institutions to deliver skills development programs in line with the market demand. Overall, it is expected that the improved labor market services will result in better job matching and shorter periods of unemployment for people.
The project will help enhance the relevance of technical and vocational education, higher education, and workforce training. For this, the project aims to align the national qualifications system with labor market demands, focusing on occupational standards, educational standards and curricula, and qualifications assessment and certification.
The Project’s employer demand-driven approach reflects international good practice. To this end, the Project will actively engage with employers from the private sector to identify training and skills development program needs to enhance productivity. It is expected that the increased access to relevant training will yield economic benefits both for firms to increase profits with a more productive labor force in place, and for the workforce to obtain higher earnings.
The Ministry of Healthcare and Social Development will implement the Project in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Science and the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs.
The four-year project is financed by the World Bank in the amount of US$100 million with US$37 million in co-financing from the Government of Kazakhstan. The project is scheduled for completion on June 30, 2020.
