Vocational Education and Training

Vocational education is the lifeblood of industry. Through the provision of high-quality vocational education, training providers play an essential role in supplying skilled labour to meet the needs of industry. A flexible and agile vocational education and training sector that is responsive to the changing and evolving skills demands of industry is an essential element in the development of the right types of skills and knowledge to power the modern Vietnamese economy and adapt to the everchanging landscape of the logistics sector.

The LIRC provides a conduit for vocational training providers to understand and define the needs of industry. It brings industry and vocational education providers together in a common purpose for skills development.

Very few workers in the logistics sector in Vietnam have had formal vocational training. Only around one in six holds qualifications for their job role. This represents an enormous opportunity for vocational training providers to fill the gap through the provision of a mix of on-the-job short course specialised training to longer form certificate level qualifications.

Skilling the existing workforce so that students are equipped with the right mix of skills and knowledge to be job ready, as well as training the next generation of workers to prepare for the challenges of automation and increasingly sophisticated supply chains and distribution networks are challenges the LIRC is seeking to address. We are doing this through engaging with the vocational education and training sector to bring a partnership approach to engagement with industry to define skills needs.

The LIRC includes industry representatives from some of Vietnam’s largest integrated logistics enterprises, foreign investment enterprises and logistics services firms as well as some of Ho Chi Minh City’s leading vocational training institutions. We provide direction to the vocational education and training sector through our engagement with industry on emerging technical needs allowing vocational education providers to respond effectively through curriculum development and training package design tailored to the skills needs of industry in the logistic sector.

The LIRC is also pioneering ground-breaking work in the areas of inclusion and diversity in the logistics workforce. Working with leading vocational education providers in Ho Chi Minh City, we are overseeing the introduction of reasonable adjustment principles for people with disabilities in training and assessment and the workplace. Providing people with disabilities access to vocational training in logistics helps diversify the workforce and introduce innovation and new ways of working as well as addressing critical skills need shortages. Increasing automation in the sector and technology enabled job roles provide opportunities for people with disabilities to bring their skills, knowledge and experience to the logistics sector.

The LIRC is also assisting vocational training providers to fill skills gaps in the sector by expanding the appeal of a career in logistics to more diverse student cohorts. The development of diversity and inclusion strategies are important tools in attracting new and more diverse students to the sector.

Attracting the best talent, providing the right skills to match the needs of industry and developing a platform for dialogue and policy development for industry and the vocational training sector are priorities for the LIRC in its support of the logistics sector.