PRESS RELEASE

Ambassador of India to Germany MrsSujatha Singh cheering the Indian Delegation in Leipzig at the
inaugural ceremony of 42nd WSC

The ‘Made in India’ brand tests its vocational skills at the 42nd World Skills Competition 2013 being held in Leipzig, Germany from 2nd-7thJuly 2013.  The inaugural of this competition was held on 2nd July at Leipzig. 

Termed the ‘Olympics of Skills’, World Skills Competition(WSC) is the largest vocational skills education competition in the world, which takes place in a member country of world skills every two years by bringing together over 1000 apprentices and young specialists from industry, handcrafts and services to compete in a variety of skills ranging from welding to web designing.India is represented by CII in collaboration with National Skills Development Council.

With 61 member countries and 45 official competition disciplines ranging from floristry to print media to IT network system administration, World Skills Competition provides an international platform to showcase ones vocational skills, thereby giving an opportunity to the young to compete with the best in their particular field. World Skills also features programs for vocational education experts and institutions. 

The idea of holding a vocational excellence competition was born in Spain more than 60 years ago, with the first national competition held in 1947 in Madrid.


Indian team joining the Parade of Nations

The Indian team at the WSC comprises of 24 competitors representing 22 skill categories covering the sectors of Electronics, Mechanical design, Beauty therapy, Hair dressing, Web design, CNC turning, Cooking, Mechatronics, Fashion technology, CNC milling, Jewellery, Confectionary, IT solutions, Auto-body repair, Mobile robotics and Automobile technology. Besides Engineers & Professionals, the participants from Indiaalso come from economically disadvantaged sections of the society.The competition will have its closing ceremony on the 7th July, wherein the best in the respective disciplines will be felicitated.

Participation by India in such a mega event is of particular importance as India has the largest youth population in the world with around 66 per cent of the total population under the age of 35, which is ready to enter the national labor market and who need to be equipped with essential skills to seek productive employment.In addition to the existing domestic scenario, India\'s surplus labour will coincide with labour shortages in many parts of the world, giving it a chance to provide the \'workforce of the world’, providedthe country’s trained personnel meet the quality standards demanded internationally. Thus, acquisition of job related skills more particularly vocational skills is the future of the Indian job market and its global economic clout.

Ambassador of India to Germany & Foreign Secretary designate, MrsSujatha Singh interacted with the young participants and hosted a dinner reception for them in Leipzig on the inaugural ceremony night.

One of the most important areas of Indo-German bilateral cooperation is Vocational Education & Training (VET). Following the WSC, the 6th Indo-German Joint Working Group (JWG) meeting on VET is to be held in Dresden from 8th-9th July 2013.