Labour training for Mekong Delta's agricultural sector should be improved
Labour training for Mekong Delta's agricultural sector should be improved
The shortage of skilled labour and a lack of favourable policies for job training are barriers to occupation transfer and job creation for the agriculture sector in the Mekong Delta, attendees heard at a conference held on Thursday in Ha Noi.Speaking at the conference, Tran Thi Thanh Nhan from the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD) said that aging agricultural labour forces were the trend in the Mekong Delta.
Surveys conducted by IPSARD on seven provinces, including An Giang, Soc Trang, Ca Mau, Vinh Long, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Long An and Binh Duong showed that the number of labourers in the agro-forestry-fishery sector who are under 35 years old decreased from 37.4 per cent in 2012 to 26.2 per cent in 2017 while those who are over 50 years old rose to 34.1 per cent from 24.1 per cent over the same period, she said.
Most workers engaged in the sector haven’t undergone training, according to the surveys.
“The young labour force has migrated to industrial parks in Binh Duong Province (53 per cent), HCM City (19 per cent), where they could enjoy better working conditions, higher salaries and more stable jobs,” said Nguyen Thi Hoang Yen, deputy director of the Department of Co-operatives and Rural Development under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Although support has been given to the Mekong Delta, only 78.3 per cent of trained labourers got jobs, compared with the country’s 81.3 per cent on average.
Nhan attributed obstacles to occupation transfer and job creation for agricultural sector in the region to labours’ weaknesses, namely lack of professionalism and qualifications.
The capacity of training schools and centres and connections between the training facilities and employers were also problems, she said.
Truong Tien Tho, deputy director of An Giang Province’s Agricultural and Rural Development Department, said the lack of coordination between vocational institutions and enterprises has affected the training process and job creation for workers.
In addition, most vocational institutions have not approached enterprises to grasp recruitment needs, he said, adding that some businesses have not set up criteria for employees before recruitment.
He proposed the Government increase vocational training support for rural workers including learners and trainers after 2020 in order to have more skilled labourers for rural development and restructuring of agricultural sector.
A preferential policy relating to loan access should be issued so that workers could invest into production, thereby generating jobs by themselves, he said.
According to Yen, it was necessary to improve skills of workers through training, providing assistance for labourers to change their jobs and enhance connectivity between workers and the labour market.
Tran Cong Thang, director of Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, said that priority should be given to training relevant to occupation transfer. Investment in industries requiring a large amount of employees at localities was a must.
He also said that exporting agricultural labour was also a solution to be taken into account. Accordingly, it was necessary to study key labour markets, labour export policies as well as strengthen cooperation with advanced agricultural economies around the world, Thang said.
