Life Long Learning(including career guidance)

2014–2020 planning period Informal consultation meeting

Riga, February 28, 2013

Planning framework – EU2020

EU 2020 employment target: − 75% of the 20-64 year-olds to be employed

Latvian National Reform Programme direction:− Minimising structural unemployment by ensuring better

correspondence of qualification and skills to the requirements of the labour market.

EU 2020 / ET 2020 benchmarks Latvia’s national targets

Persons with higher education (40%; age group 30-34)

34-36%

Early School Leavers (below 10%; age group 18-24)

13,4 %

Employment (age group 20-64) 73%(67% 2011)

Adult participation in lifelong learning (age 25-64)

15%(5.1% 2011; EU27 – 8.9%)

Planning framework: NDP2020

National Development Plan for 2014-2020:Strategic Objectives and Outcomes (Priority «Human

Securitability»; Decent Work):

− The reduction of the employed persons subject to the poverty risk from 9,5% in 2011 to 5% in 2020

− The increase of the proportion of employment for people at the age fit for work from 67% in 2011 to 73% in 2020

Country-specific Recommendations for Latvia 2012

Take measures to reduce long-term and youth unemployment by:

fighting early school leaving, promoting more efficient apprenticeships and VET, enhancing the quality, coverage and effectiveness of active labor market policy and its training component and through an effective wage subsidy scheme.

LLL structure overview – 2011 - Efficient? -

9 national ministries along with other stakeholders collaborate in the implementation of the lifelong strategy. This model of governance is intended to ensure that adult learning responds to the needs of various groups of individuals in different sectors and for different reasons.

Main funds for adult learning are distributed from the MoES and MoW. Local governments are also responsible for adult non-formal education

provision. They had established a network of adult education institutions. However due to very limited resources available, they may stop further developments of government adult education institutions.

Informal learning acquired through working and personal life has been given higher value through the ability to validate it as a form of educational level (starting 2011).

Key providers:− There are 31 general education evening schools, − A network of 58 vocational education institutions,− 58 higher education institutions (including 26 colleges) − 571 adult non-formal education institutions.

Distance learning/ e-learning facilities are offered in most universities. There are also LLL centres in the regional universities which put special emphasis on adult education and offer a broad variety of adult learning courses.

Also large private companies have training centres. There is a network of private and non-governmental education institutions caring of specific needs and requirements of individuals.

Long- and medium-term labour market forecasts (MoE, June, 2012)

Overall conclusion: the higher level qualifications dominate in the long-term labour force forecasts

Higher education should increase its provision in such sectors as:A. Engineering, B. ICT; C. Health care, social welfare, the pharmaceutical industry;

Vocational secondary education should increase its provision in the following sectors:

A. Agriculture, B. Metal working, mechanical engineering and related fields, C. industrial equipment and machine operators; D. in a few service sectors (e.g. information proceeding, hotel, restaurant and tourism,

etc);

It is expected that within the medium-term specialists of various fields will need to change their qualification:

Specialists with higher education: A. ≈10% in humanities & social sciences,B. ≈10% in trade & business, C. ≈5% in education establishments;

Specialists with vocational secondary education: D. ≈5% in construction industry-related sectors;E. ≈5% in service-related sectors; F. ≈20% of the economically active inhabitants having basic education or lower.

Policy initiatives 2012+

Current LLL strategy implementation is fragmented and does not effectively use existing public education infrastructure (public procurement procedure problem for state-owned schools).

Policy initiatives:

− Public education institutions (mainly vocational education institutions) as providers of adult learning;

− It is planned to ensure that vocational education competence centres are for ≈50% used in providing further education, adult learning

− It is planned to introduce legislative changes regarding governance of vocational education institutions ensuring participation of employers and municipality;

− It is planned to introduce legislative changes in order to promote workplace-based learning elements in VET curricula;

− Further optimization of vocational education institutions network analyzing market needs at regional and national level (school types, qualification/program portfolio).

Lifelong learning - Gaps

GAP 1: Insufficient level of adults participation in education and training, number of adults with low qualificationAccording to the CSB survey data (2011), main reasons are: a) costs, as training is too expensive, they could not afford it (53.3.%), b) time schedule, as training could not be linked to the work schedule (35%) and c) family conditions (30.8%).

GAP 2: Need for capacity building of vocational education institutions to provide availability of adult training programs and relevant skills in both full time professional education programs and further and adult education according to labour market needs and changes (including development of modular education programs)

GAP 3: Availability and quality of professional orientation and career guidance system to facilitate youth employment and mastering first experience.Results of Workforce survey (2011) evident that the number of residents in the age group from 18 to 24 who do not have secondary education and are not continuing their studies is 19.7 thousand, besides data shows that the early school leaving in vocational education is because they have not chosen their future profession correctly.

Educational attainment level of employees(15-64 years old)

_9%

22%34% 35%

Primary education orlower

Secondary education Tertiary education Vocational education

Source: CSB LFS data, 4th quarter 2012

Lifelong learning - objectives

Objective 1: Providing support to adult education – facilitating continuous perfection and development of knowledge, skills and competence of the population by ensuring availability of lifelong learning for the residents by forming the offer of quality education for adults.

Objective 2: Optimising the offer of vocational education institutions according to the demand of labour market and changes in the technologies, as well as ensuring their availability to various target groups – modernising infrastructure, restructuring vocational education programs into flexible study modules, improving methodological provisions of studies and study environment, strengthening capacity of teachers for the work with the adults.

Objective 3: Development of career guidance and professionally-oriented education, ensuring career guidance services for youth in all Latvian regions, thus promoting purposeful career development un fostering youth employment

Actions to be supported

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Overview of support instruments

BETTER OFFERING (MoES):1) Support to capacity building of

vocational education institutions in adult learning 6.19 m LVL

2) The sectoral qualification system improvement and restructuring of the vocational education in order to promote its development, attractiveness and correspondence to the labor market needs 10.97 m LVL

CAREER GUIDANCE (MoES)3) Development of professional career

guidance and professionally-oriented education, ensuring career guidance services for youth in all Latvian regions, thus promoting purposeful career development un fostering youth employment 11 m LVL

4) Career choice activity complex, including social support and grants for youth subject to risk so that the young person would not abandon the professional education institution as long as possible and would acquire qualification useful in the labour market 14 m LVL

EDUCATION & TRAINING AVAILABILITY:MoW:1) Lifelong learning activities for employed persons (25+)

19 m LVL2) Comprehensive solutions to skills development of older

workers (unemployed/ job-seekers/ employed 50+) and retaining their employability 7.5 m LVL3) Training (including e-skills) and

competitiveness raising measures for unemployed and job-seekers, including apprenticeships 72 m LVL

MoE:4) Training of employees and management

organized in partnership with employers organizations 7 m LVL

MoH:5) Development of Health Sector Human Recourses (re-

training and up-skilling of personnel) 16 m LVL

MoERD:6) Improvement of e-skills (raising ICT competences of

state & municipal management officials in order to effectively organize delivery of services; improve general public’s knowledge about e-services and e-opportunities provided by the public administration) 4.04 m LVL

Ministry of Education and Science

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Support InstrumentsBETTER OFFERING – I

Activity: Capacity building of vocational education institutions in adult learning (6.19 million LVL)

− Support to improvement of vocational education Competence Centres` administrative and training personnel competence concerning issues of training arrangements, methodology and in the context of technology development, including support to elaboration of relevant programs for courses and seminars; support to staff capacity building in the context of internationalisation (cross-border and international cooperation projects) of vocational education (apprenticeships in Latvia – courses, seminars), in the context of life skills, healthy lifestyle, green thinking and entrepreneurship development;

− Support to development of methodological material and elaboration of adult education programs, including support in the context of up-to-date technology development (improvement of skills with i-pad and other type of up-to-date devices, new software, applications);

− Support to improvement of knowledge and quality of professional activities of vocational education teachers as regards key competences leading to the profession in a concrete field. Support measures to improve quality of practical competences of vocational education teachers in collaboration with employers, including the field of entrepreneurship, as well as in the context of experience exchanges and transposition of good practice;

− Support to establishment of a unified data base on adult learning implementation in order to coordinate activities of state administration institutions in the context of the supply and demand in adult and further education, for ensuring collaboration with employers, etc.

Support InstrumentsBETTER OFFERING – I

Activity: The sectoral qualification system improvement and restructuring of the vocational education in order to promote its development, attractiveness and correspondence to the labor market needs

− development of the professionals standards, professional qualifications requirements and qualification exam content according to the developed sectoral qualifications framework for the certain basic professions (occupations), qualification requirements of specialization, National Qualification Framework and European Credit System for Vocational Education (ECVET).

− ensuring the functioning of the sectoral experts councils (SEC) secretariat; PLA organization within the networks including workshops in Latvia and abroad, an international conference organization. The need to provide SEC sustainability consequents from the SEC work assessment and also it based on the discussion with the social partners.

− creation of the network of the vocational education institutions, examination centers and other institutions involved into the non-formal and informal education validation process. The network objective will be directed to the ensuring of the holistic approach in validation process and straightening capacity of the vocational institutions (38) and State Education Quality Centre. Implementation of the support activities for validation of the professional competences acquired outside formal education system in the context of the labour migration; organization of the informative activities involving sectoral professional organization.

− development of the teaching aids for the modular education programmes implementation, including digital, in 38 vocational education institutions in cooperation with the SEC and in the line with the labor market dynamic changes

Support InstrumentsCAREER GUIDANCE - I

Activity: Development of professional career guidance and professionally-oriented education, ensuring career guidance services for youth in all Latvian regions, thus promoting purposeful career development un fostering youth employment (11 million LVL)

− Support for elaborating methodological basics of professional career guidance and professionally-oriented education, innovative solutions and resources, training of educators and career consultants, in.al creating career consultant jobs;

− Implementation of career development and professional orientation measures in general, vocational and higher education institutions in co-operation with employers and professional organisations, promoting attractiveness of vocational education, providing access to informative and training materials in education establishments, implementation of professionally-oriented activities, especially facilitating co-operation with branch enterprises in implementing activities of technical and intellectual innovation and in planning the carrier in connection with natural sciences, mathematics, and information technologies, engineering sciences and technologies, industrial production and construction, health care and environment protection, as well as reducing the impact of professional stereotypes and increasing the motivation of youngsters to acquire a profession where there is lack of labour force.

Target : 603 680 students receiving consultancy and continuing their studies

Support InstrumentsCAREER GUIDANCE - II

Activity: Set of measures for carrier guidance, including social support and scholarships for young people under risk, in order to retain the youngsters in the VET institution as long as possible and to provide them with a qualification need in the labour market (14 m LVL):

Preventive and compensating support activities for young people subject to risk of early school leaving:

– career choice activity complex (career days, project weeks, shadow days in the companies, cooperation with the companies, company days in VET institution and alike),

– provision for social support by providing grants to young people who are subject to the risk (50 LVL per month in average) so that the young person would not abandon the vocational education institution and would acquire qualification.

Target : 15 093 youngsters receiving support and continuing their studies

Ministry of Welfare

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LIFELONG LEARNINGActions to be supported (1)

Activity: Lifelong learning activities for employed personsObjective: Support access to lifelong learning for employed persons (excluding civil

servants) aged 25 years and more in order to increase their work productivity Target group: Employed and self-employed persons aged 25 years and more (excluding

civil servants):• with low level of skills or qualification • with one or more dependants • employed persons with low income level (priority for participation will be

given to employed aged 45 years and more)• with disability

Type of support: Career counselling services and support to gaining vocational education and training, training of skills, accompanying services for persons with disabilities (sign language interpreters)

• Indicative financing for activity in NDP – 19 m LVL • Expected results – 65 thousand trained persons

LIFELONG LEARNINGActions to be supported (2)

Activity: Comprehensive solutions to skills development of older workers (50 years and more) and retaining their employability

Objective: Increase the employment rate and productivity of older workers

Target group: Unemployed, job-seekers and employed aged 50 years and more Type of support: Measures for skills development, training at employer, consulting

employers about working conditions and work safety issues, career planning and personnel policy issues in order to facilitate longer stay of older workers in the labour market, adjustment of the workplace and workplace assessment, development of human resources, training and consultations of employed and employers on safe ways of working, healthy workplace ageing and healthy

workplace management • Indicative financing for activity in NDP – 7,45 m LVL • Expected results – 14 projects implemented by employers’ organisations, 4

thousand older employees trained or consulted

Ministry of Health

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Development of Health Sector Human Recourses (MoH)

Total funding : 16 mil. LVL:− ESF funding (85%): 13.6 mil. LVL− National public funding (25%): 2.4 mil. LVL

Reforms and development of health sector support measures oriented on retraining and development of human recourses, for example:

− In order to make health care services more accessible in regions, it is necessary to train personnel in additional specialisation, thus making usage of human recourses more effective

− Newly created health networks demand properly trained personnel, in order to add to services accessibility appropriate quality

− In order to move mentally ill persons from hospitals and other institutions to outpatient care, it is necessary to train general practitioners and other related personnel to ensure assistance for mentioned persons

− to improve quality of health care services, it is necessary to continuously advance overall and special skills of health care personnel

Development of Health Sector Human Recourses (MoH)

Total funding : 16 mil. LVL:− ESF funding (85%): 13.6 mil. LVL− National public funding (25%): 2.4 mil. LVL

Reforms and development of health sector support measures oriented on retraining and development of human recourses, for example:

− In order to make health care services more accessible in regions, it is necessary to train personnel in additional specialisation, thus making usage of human recourses more effective

− Newly created health networks demand properly trained personnel, in order to add to services accessibility appropriate quality

− In order to move mentally ill persons from hospitals and other institutions to outpatient care, it is necessary to train general practitioners and other related personnel to ensure assistance for mentioned persons

− to improve quality of health care services, it is necessary to continuously advance overall and special skills of health care personnel

Ministry of Economics

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Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

EU 2020 target for Latvia: increase the level of employment to 73%.

Mid-term and Long-term Labour Market Forecasts (Ministry of Economics, 2012): In 2012 the number of employed grew by 2.3%, but the level of unemployment decreased by 1.3 per cent-points to 14.9%; In 2012 almost all industries demonstrated an increase in the number of available jobs; Growth of the number of economically active people is limited by decreasing amount of working age population due to emigration, aging population and low birth-rate; In mid-term the supply and demand in labour market will continue to be disproportionate (mismatch of skills and regional); Skills mismatch is one of the major causes for structural labour deficit and unemployment.

Analysis of current situation

Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

Adequacy of labour force in high qualification profession groups

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Labour force supply and demand ratio in 2020(%, target development scenario)

Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

Adequacy of labour force in medium qualification profession groups

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Labour force supply and demand ratio in 2020(%, target development scenario)

Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

Labour demand by professions

2011 2020 2030

Higher skilled professions 341 388 434

Managers 88 97 103

Senior specialists 147 169 192

Specialists 106 122 138

Secondary qualifications 397 421 431

Clerks 48 49 48

Service and sales specialists 130 138 144

Skilled agricultural and forestry specialists 32 28 22

Skilled workers and craftsmen 106 120 130

Plant and machine operators 81 86 88

Low-skilled professions 124 116 101

Total 862 925 965

in thousands

Source: Mid-term and Long-term Labour Market Forecasts, Ministry of Economics,

2012

Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

Market gaps have been identified in National Industrial Policy 2013-2020 :Skills mismatch – availability of labour force and its skillsAging population and massive emigrationInappropriate and insufficient supply from vocational education Low productivity

To ensure an increase in the level of productivity of enterprises and a continued growth of export investments must be targeted at additional :training of highly-qualified employees and further management training Introduction of modern and effective management systems Transfer of high-productivity technologies and machinery

Such measures are needed to implement National Industrial Policy along with the objectives to promote competitiveness of SMEs and R&D&I capacity and increase employment.

Market gaps

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Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

Increase of absorptive capacity by improved quality of teaching in STEMs (all levels of education) Focus on vocational education Increased cooperation between vocational schools and universities in development and implementation of learning process Reshape of practice model by piloting apprenticeship principle Measures to develop work force:

Grants for training of employees and management – improved skills of work force

Measures to develop skills and knowledge at level necessary to return to labour market

Increased participation of employers organizations in determination of training needs and provision of training

Promotion of life long learning

Necessary measures for education/skills development

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Latvijas Republikas

Ekonomikas ministrijaMinistry of EconomicsRepublic of Latvia

Increased productivity of labour force; Involvement of industry associations in training of labour force according to needs and

development trends of industries; Promotion of growth of enterprises and strengthening their positions in niche markets; Ensured availability of labour force with adequate qualifications and level of knowledge; Reduced administrative burden (trainings in partnership are more efficient and effective

compared to individually organized trainings); By providing training for management existing jobs are maintained and new jobs can be

created.

Indicative financing for activity in NDP – 5.25m LVL; Expected results – 10500 trained employees (approx. 1.2% of the employed population).

Justification for training of employees and management (organized in partnership with employers organizations)

Ministry of environmental protection and regional development of the republic of

LatviaActivity: Improvement of e-skills

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Strategies and policy planning documents

2

Complies with the priority’s “Smart, sustainable and inclusive growth” flagship initiative “Digital Agenda for Europe” of the strategic document Europe 2020: strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth;

Complies with the action area of the National Reform Program of Latvia “EU 2020” “Rebalanced economic development, promoting development of tradable sectors and raising productivity” and its action “Development of information and communication technologies (ICT) and implementation of Single Market”

Complies with the priorities “Innovative and competitive business and research environment” and “Modern infrastructure for growth and jobs” of the Position of the Commission Services on the development of Partnership Agreement and programmes in Latvia for the period 2014-2020;

Complies with the priority “Growth supporting areas” and its action area “Availability of services for creating more equal opportunities for employment and living conditions” of National Development Plan 2014-2020;

Complies with priority “Innovative government and public participation” and its long-term action direction “E-government and Public innovation” of the Sustainable development strategy of Latvia until 2030;

Current situation & objective

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Objective: To improve general public’s knowledge about e-services and e-opportunities provided by the public administration, as well as to raise ICT competences of state and municipal management officials in order to effectively organize delivery of services, thus providing greater economic return of investments in development of e-services and information systems

% of general public

1 public opinion poll results (2012);Eurostat

Headline targets & objectives

35

• Digital Agenda for Europe 50 % of citizens use eGovernment by 2015, with more than half returning completed

forms To halve the proportion of citizens that has never used the internet by 2015 to 15%

Scope of support

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It is planned to support: educational campaigns targeted at improvement of people’s knowledge about

public administration e-services and e-opportunities offers and their utilization training of ICT skills for public administration IT professionals about effective ICT

governance, architecture and maintenance issues educational training for state and municipal management officials on public ICT

opportunities for effective organization of service delivery

Activity is indispensable to reach the objectives of activities “Development of e-services, enhancing availability and use of public services”, “Open and interoperable public data infrastructure” and “Development of digital content”

Scope of support

Improvement of e-skills 4,04 LVL

Educational campaigns 762 112 LVL

256 000 individuals (1 campaign– 27 000 LVL)

Trainings for public government IT professionals 2 005 132 LVL

590 IT professionals (4 specialized courses 3

200 LVL)

Trainings for state and municipal management

1 274 449 LVL

1500 officers (1 course 800 LVL)

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