Jaipur, 14^th July 2022.

Celebrated on July 15^th every year since 2014, when the United Nations instituted World Youth Skills Day (WYSD); the theme for 2022 is “Transforming Youth Skills for the Future.” WYSD highlights the vital need to equip young people with future-ready skills,making them employment ready.

With rapid technological advances and evolving socio-economic trends in the backdrop of the COVID pandemic, job roles are changing at a pace and depth that has rendered an estimated 1.3 billion people worldwide affected by a skills mismatch. Therefore, the skills ecosystem requires skilling, reskilling and upskilling of massive proportions. As per McKinsey, 25 percent more workers than previously estimated will potentially need to switch occupations due to the pandemic.

Speaking on the occasion of WYSD, Dr Ajay Kela, President, and CEO, of Wadhwani Foundation, said, “Digital transformation of businesses, accelerated by COVID, is opening large volumes of high-paying job opportunities for global youth. Skills required to command these digital jobs can be acquired through numerous short-term training programs, and increasingly, employers are valuing such skills over academic credentials. On World Youth Skills Day 2022, I encourage the youth to capitalize on these opportunities through self-paced online re/upskilling programs, thus improving their job prospects and empowering themselves to become continuous learners for in-demand skills and jobs.”

On the occasion of World Youth Skills Day, Wadhwani Foundation and its skills-led initiative, Wadhwani Opportunity,share details on eight key emerging trendsthat will reshape the Indian skills ecosystem in times to come.

Further explaining the changing paradigm in skilling,Sunil Dahiya, Executive Vice President, Wadhwani Opportunity, added, “Covid-19 has effected fundamental changes at the workplace that demand future-proof skilling for future-ready jobs largely driven by advancing technologies and automation. However, along with the increasing importance of technological skills, the need for soft or employability skills has also surged. While smart machines are taking care of the repetitive and cognitive jobs, there is increasing realisation of how teams equipped with social-emotional skills possess a definite competitive advantage. Wadhwani Opportunity is, therefore, focused on imparting both deep domain and soft/employability skills to equip the youth towards family-sustaining jobs.”