SME Times News Bureau | 10 Apr, 2013
Vice President Hamid Ansari Tuesday said that in the coming
decades, the global stature of a country would depend not so much on military
prowess as on the strength of its economy, its contribution to existing and
emerging branches of science and technology, and its ability to respond to the
imperatives of a globalizing world.
Knowledge and skills would increasingly become the primary
determinants of economic growth and social development, Ansari said, addressing
at an event in Maharashtra. He said that skill building will also remain a
potent instrument to empower the individual and improve his/her social
acceptance or value.
He opined that in our context, the objective of skill development
is also to create a workforce empowered with the required and constantly
upgraded skills, knowledge and internationally recognized certifications to
gain access to quality employment and ensure India’s competitiveness in the
global market.
It aims at increasing the productivity and employability of
workforce and to enhance its capability to adapt to changing technologies and
labour market demands, he said.
The Vice President said that India has the second largest
working population in the world after China, and is one of the few countries
where the working age population will be far in excess of those dependent on
them.
According to the World Bank, this will continue for at least
three decades till 2040. This would be a potential source of strength for our
economy provided, and I repeat provided, we are able to equip and continuously
upgrade the skills of our population in the working age group. We have the
potential to emerge as the skill capital of the world.
He said that this 'demographic dividend' emerges because we
have the world’s youngest work force with a median age way below that of China,
North America and Western Europe. Alongside this window of opportunity for
India, the global economy is expected to witness a skilled man power shortage
to the extent of around 56 million by 2020.
"Thus, our demographic dividend can be utilised not only to
expand the production possibility frontiers but also to meet the skilled
manpower requirements in India and the rest of the world," he said.
The Vice President expressed his concern that the quality of
employment in organized sector is generally high though the scope of additional
employment generation in this sector is rather limited. On the other hand, the
informal sector suffers from rampant under-employment, low productivity and
even lower wages.
"Given the overwhelming percentage of our people working in
the informal sector, skill development and up-gradation becomes all the more
important. As the Indian economy continues to transform and mature, large scale
sectoral shifts in the working population are inevitable, particularly from
agriculture to manufacturing and services sectors. These sectors, however,
require significantly different and often specialist skill sets, which require
training and skill development," he said.