Held on Thursday 14 December 2023, in the presence of the Minister of Labor and Social Insurance Mr. Yannis Panagiotou, “Consultation Day for upgrading the National Skills Competitions and for the participation of Cyprus in the Euroskills European Competition”. The Conference was held at the Hellenic Bank Administration Building in Nicosia and was organized by the Productivity Center.
The purpose of the Consultation Day was to upgrade the National Skills Competition and the participation of Cyprus in the Euroskills European Competition which focuses on professions and skills that are considered necessary to maintain Europe's competitiveness and aims to attract more young people to technical professions.
During the event, the results of the Cyprus National Skills Team at the Euroskills 2023 European Skills Competition, which took place in September 2023 in Gdansk, Poland, were presented. A discussion was also held to make decisions for a more dynamic presence of Cyprus in future European Competitions in a way that would contribute substantially to the improvement of the level of Cypriot craftsmen and technical vocational education and training.
In his greeting, the Minister of Labor and Social Insurance Mr. Yiannis Panagiotou praised the importance and contribution of technical skills and certified education and training both for improving the employability of young people and for the wider utilization of the opportunities presented in the dynamic environment in which we live. Skills competitions, Mr. Panagiotou said, are a very useful tool to highlight the importance of technical professions. An option, in addition to the subsidized youth employment projects implemented with great success by the Ministry of Labor and Social Insurance and the Human Resources Development Authority, is also the provision of more and alternative qualifications to young people. This can only be achieved through appropriate vocational education and training. Labor market demands are increasing and needs are changing. It is no longer enough to be able to do a specific task well, but instead we should possess a set of skills, core, horizontal and digital. For this reason, the Minister noted, the Ministry of Labor and Social Insurance has already started the implementation of the “Modern Professional Development for the Green and Digital Transition” Action Plan, which includes three main pillars: the development of a modern professional culture, social targeted learning and Professional Qualification and certification.
