Tackling the skills’ gap

Whereas our unemployment rate has gone down to a record level, youth unemployment in Malta is still significantly higher.

In Malta, unemployment stands at 5% while youth unemployment is 8%. This is a phenomenon that is felt across all the European 28 member states. In fact while the EU average unemployment rate in 2014 stood at 10.2%, the percentage of jobless people under 25 was almost double at 22.2%. This average is high compared to other regions in the world and it is a clear indication that there is a lack of employability among Europe’s young.

At the same time many companies face recruitment problems in filling certain key positions. There are numerous vacancies wherein companies find it difficult to employ competent people with the skills required for the particular job.

Both educators and employers have to work hand in hand to ensure that our young people can apply both the knowledge and the hard and soft skills they learn at school and in higher education so that these may be put into practice throughout their career. Continuous improvement of people’s skills increases and maintains their employability. Young people need the opportunity to sharpen their skills so that they can quickly join the job market.

In February 2015, a survey carried out by the European Round-table of Industrialists observed a skills-mismatch: a deviation between a graduate’s skills and the skills needed in their company. Skills and experiences mentioned most frequently as underdeveloped or lacking include personal and social skills; autonomy and personal independence; working in teams, communication; practical experience; digital and technical skills and proficiency in the English language.

We need to build the next generation of talents for the digital enterprise and to drive innovation from academia and next generation users to the digital enterprise. There will be an increasing demand from the industry for Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) graduates since the demand for ICT practitioners increases by an average of 3% per annum.

Between 2000 and 2011 the employment growth overall was 8%, comparatively high-tech employment increased by 20%. We must encourage the modernisation of our education system to ensure that no student leaves school without a basic set of STEM and ICT skills as these are essential to operate and function in a fully digitised information society. STEM and ICT skills strategies should be developed and implemented and at the same time business and research centres should co-operate to identify early on new STEM and ICT job profiles and the associated skill-sets.

We have to encourage the spirit of entrepreneurship. Although not all citizens will become entrepreneurs, all citizens should have an enterprising attitude – towards their choice of initial study, to their careers, to further education and training and to their lives.

Apprenticeships and traineeships are areas which have to be developed further. They enable students to acquire the knowledge and skills that are directly relevant for their professional life. They become familiar with a business environment which reduces the time they need to become fully operational either within a company or self-employed. This enhances their employability and gives them a clear competitive edge. Traineeships and apprenticeships foster the relationship between schools and business.

This is why we must close the skills gap between business and education to equip youths with the skills they need to succeed in a global economy. Educators and employers should inspire young people to be more entrepreneurial and enterprising to start companies, bring entrepreneurial skills and better manage their careers. We also want to add a social dimension for active citizenship which will help our youngsters acquire life skills which are so important to 21st Century societies. We want our youth to have the conviviality to address adulthood with democracy and solidarity and away from fundamentalism and terrorism. A cohesive society is crucial for economic growth and job creation.

Evarist Bartolo is Minister for Education and Employment