Blowing in the Wind - a historical look at international developments in career guidance policy

Career guidance and counselling, career education and lifelong development of skills for employability are key for success in learning activities, effective career transitions, livelihood planning, entrepreneurship and in increasing labour market participation. They are instrumental in promoting skills utilization, recognition (RPL), as well as in improving enterprise human resource management.

Career development activities encompass a wide variety of support activities including career information and advice, counselling, work exposure (e.g. job shadowing, work experience periods), assessment, coaching, mentoring, professional networking, advocacy, basic and employability skills training (curricular and non-curricular) and entrepreneurship training. It is often an area which is fragmented across different ministries (e.g. education, TVET, employment, youth) requiring an effort to achieve the necessary coordination to provide adequate support to individuals during learning, employment and unemployment/inactivity periods.
 

Effective governance and coordination are key elements of successful skill systems. Whilst coordination is an important factor, it needs to operate alongside other key conditions to strengthen governance. When multi-level governance is supported by effective communication, sustainable financing and effective coordination, it has the best chance of supporting the establishment of a lifelong learning ecosystem that enables individuals and enterprises to more effectively navigate the world of work and learning.

Matching skills to labour market demand requires reliable sectoral and occupational information and institutions that connect employers with training providers.  Sector based strategies and institutions have proved effective in engaging all stakeholders in promoting both pre-employment training and life-long learning.

Skills and employment policies should be viewed together.  The full value of one policy set is realized when it supports the objectives of the other.  For investments in education and training to yield maximum benefit to workers, enterprises, and economies, countries’ capacities for coordination is critical in three areas: connecting basic education to technical training and then to market entry; ensuring continuous communication between employers and training providers so that training meets the needs and aspirations of workers and enterprises, and integrating skills development policies with industrial, investment, trade, technology, environmental, rural and local development policies.