Medway Liberal Democrats support World Youth Skills Day on Thursday 15th July
On 15 July, UNESCO-UNEVOC will join the global celebrations to mark World Youth Skills Day (WYSD). The aim of WYSD is to recognize the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, entrepreneurship, and to highlight the crucial role of skilled youth in addressing current and future global challenges.
Medway Liberal Democrats strongly support the local work of the National Citizen Service (NCS), an opportunity for young people to take on new challenges, meet new friends and develop personal and social development skills for work and life. We have participated in a number of local 'Political Question Time' panel discussions organised by the NCS, and found the breadth and quality of the questions asked always impressive and reflects the civic-minded nature of NCS participants.
The NCS has provided a means for young people in our area to meet different people within our community, respect diversity and equality of others by contributing to a wider society and life in Medway. It also encourages young people from a variety of different backgrounds, cultures, classes and different parts of the Medway area to mix, develop team work skills and work together. Our towns have already benefitted from the NCS experience, with inspiring social action projects, which helps develop skills not taught in schools, and being a part of the NCS can be a life-changing experience for those participating.
In these challenging times, when more young people are experiencing anxiety over their future and employment prospects, the NCS wants to make its programme of activities and experience safe and open for everyone taking part.
John Castle, spokesperson for Medway Liberal Democrats added, "Locally, we have campaigned against the closure of Chatham Docks and highlighted the loss of jobs and apprenticeships that the Docks currently provides.
The Docks support 16 apprenticeships which are projected to grow to 30, and provides training opportunities for local colleges with skills and knowledge, which clearly benefits Medway's youth and future local skill base. Liberal Democrats have visited the site and seen for themselves how important the Docks are to Medway, all this would be lost if the closure were to go ahead."
Liberal Democrats know that once restrictions have been totally lifted, the work and role of the NCS will contribute to our community and in a post-COVID-19 Medway, as young people are called upon to contribute to the recovery effort, they will need to be equipped with the skills to successfully manage evolving challenges and the resilience to adapt to future disruptions.
For more information on the role of the NCS please visit: https://wearencs.com/ and its 'Staying Connected' hub 'no you can't' into 'No We Can' and for up to date news on their summer programme.
ENDS
Notes for Editors
Why is World Youth Skills Day important?
Rising youth unemployment is one of the most significant problems facing economies and societies in today's world, for developed and developing countries alike. The latest Global Employment Trends for Youth 2020: Technology and the future of jobs shows that since 2017, there has been an upward trend in the number of youth not in employment, education or training (NEET).
In 2016 there were 259 million young people classified as NEET - a number that rose to an estimated 267 million in 2019, and is projected to continue climbing to around 273 million in 2021. In terms of percentage, the trend was also slightly up from 21.7% in 2015 to 22.4% in 2020 - implying that the international target to reduce the NEET rate by 2020 will be missed.
Designated by the General assembly in 2014, the World Youth Skills Day is an opportunity for young people, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, and public and private sector stakeholders to acknowledge and celebrate the importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.
World Youth Skills Day will take place in a challenging context. The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures have led to the worldwide closure of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, threatening the continuity of skills development. UNESCO currently estimates that nearly 70% of the world's learners are affected by school closures
across education levels. Respondents to a survey of TVET institutions, jointly collected by UNESCO, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Bank, reported that distance training has become the most common way of imparting skills, with considerable difficulties regarding, among others, curricula adaptation, trainee and trainer preparedness, connectivity, or assessment and certification processes.
Prior to the current crisis, young people aged 15-24 were three times more likely than adults to be unemployed and often faced a prolonged school-to-work transition period.
For more information on World Youth Skills Day
https://unevoc.unesco.org/wysd/World+Youth+Skills+Day
For more information on the role of the NCS please visit: https://wearencs.com/