Representatives from Brunei and Thailand confirm their willingness to train youth in order to master the challenges of industry 4.0.
Impact and effects of industry 4.0 rank high on the agenda of the ASEAN states, including the education departments of their governments. At the end of January, two high-ranking government officials from Brunei and from Thailand explicitly acknowledged their readiness to cooperate with Germany in order to successfully face the challenges of the growing digitalization in the area of work.
Apart officials of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), key representatives from iMOVE and the German Office for International Cooperation in Vocational Education and Training (GOVET) at the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) were present during both meetings.
The Minister of Education of Brunei, Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Hamzah bin Haji Sulaiman visited the BMBF in Germany. He and his delegation visited a number of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions, industry training centres, and the Chamber of Crafts in Berlin to observe best training practices and apprenticeship in the German Dual TVET system.
He also met up with His Excellency Dr. Georg Schütte, the State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), at BMBF Berlin Office in Germany. The discussion focused particularly on automotive technology and information technology. Both parties shared keen interest towards the 4th Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0) and how it impacts the curriculum in preparing innovative workforce to meet global demands and job markets in the future.
At the same time, the BMBF conducted a fact finding mission to Thailand in order to explore the framework conditions for future cooperation in the field of vocational education and training.
During a working a lunch at the German embassy in Bangkok, the Vice-Minister of Education, Dr. Udom Kachintorn, stated his conviction that the government strategy of "Thailand 4.0" can only be realized in a joint effort to streamline training measures for employees on the technician level according to the demands of industry. In order to confirm his point, he joined the German delegation in the company of two high-ranking representatives of the Thai industry.