Minister for Investment and Trade Martin-Hamilton Smith has today opened the first South Australia-Bandung Vocational International Collaboration forum today and signed a new commitment between TAFE SA and Bandung’s LPKI Politeknik.
The 50-person forum, attended by South Australian South East Asia business mission delegates and West Java vocational education providers, applied universities and vocational high schools, highlighted the importance of the VET education sector. It also raised the importance of collaboration as part of the South Australian Government’s South East Asian strategy.
South Australia is well placed to help provide vocational training support, the forum heard, and to help meet the region’s growing demand for skilled workers.
Background
Strengthening education ties with Indonesia and its provinces is a key aim of the State Government’s South East Asia Engagement Strategy, released in March 2015.
The strategy aims to build on existing connections with Indonesia to develop a mutually beneficial engagement which goes beyond politics, economics and culture.
Quotes attributable to Investment and Trade Minister Martin Hamilton-Smith
Today we affirmed our mutual commitment to expanding cooperation in vocational education and training.
Indonesia’s skilled labour force needs to increase from 55 million to 113 million over the next 14 years. This presents an urgent need for additional workers to be educated at the secondary and tertiary levels, and represents significant education and training challenges.
South Australia’s educational institutions, which rank among the best in the world, can provide support to Indonesia in upskilling workers and providing educational pathways that will benefit the Indonesian people.
Our world-class vocational education services, led by TAFE SA, are among Australia’s best, and have been providing excellent pathway arrangements to our state’s universities for more than 40 years.
Quotes attributable to TAFE Executive Director Business Development and Regions
TAFE has developed a four-step project to help strengthen the Indonesian vocational sector. The project’s aim is to work with key Government, industry and selected educational organisations to:
- Build the capability of Indonesian vocational teachers in polytechnic colleges and vocational high schools
- Better integrate vocational training with industry to produce work-ready graduates; and
- Provide pathways for Indonesian vocational students to gain international experience by studying in Adelaide.
This helps to internationalise the Indonesian vocational qualifications and means Indonesian students will get credit towards internationally recognised qualifications when they study in Indonesia.