HCM CITY — The Directorate of Vocational Education and Training has signed a memorandum of understanding with Việt Nam Logistics Business Association to increase the involvement of logistic firms in educating workforces.

During the event, the Australian-Vietnamese human resource development programme Aus4Skills also signed memorandums of understanding with the Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Việt Nam Logistics Business Association (VLA).

Their partnerships are a part of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs’ plan to link educational facilities and businesses in logistics.

Trương Anh Dũng, deputy head of the directorate, said: “Increasing the involvement of businesses in vocational education and training is an effective method to improve the quality of the workforce.”

The programme would serve as a trial for an industry-led vocational training model, which would be taken to other industries in future, he said.

Michael Sadlon, programme director of Aus4skills, said he is happy that the logistics industry has been chosen to pilot the industry-led model since it is “a foundation for almost every sector … and critical to Việt Nam maintaining its competitiveness and economic momentum.”

The model connects those with workers with others who have a need for them, and would enable industries to help schools and colleges train the workers they need, he said.

Lê Duy Hiệp, chairman of the VLA, said the MoU is a big step in connecting the VLA’s members and vocational schools to create a strong and reliable training system.

Võ Tân Thành, deputy chairman of VCCI, said the logistics sector offers students great employment opportunities.

Vocational schools and colleges in HCM City and Đồng Nai Province also signed MoUs with local logistics companies which promise internships, future job opportunities and training for their students.

Lâm Văn Quản, principal of the HCM City College of Economics, said his institution hopes to ensure that fresh graduates can satisfy employers’ demand without much further retraining.

Võ Hoàng Giang, general director of Saigon Port Corp, said these partnerships would save businesses costs and meet their demand for skilled workers.

Hoàng Thái Sơn of the Department of Formal Training said vocational schools and colleges are not able to completely satisfy the demand for highly skilled logistics workers, with many graduates lacking both hard and soft skills like English, IT, and team work, due to their lack of training facilities and skilled trainers.