Lack of skilled workers threatens Cambodia

Phnom Penh (VNA) - Cambodia is facing great risk of skilled labour insufficiency when joining the ASEAN Community, said Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Samheng.

This is a critical issue in Cambodia when the country is in need of high-quality workers for both domestic and international labour markets, he highlighted.

With 7 million workers, Cambodia has the largest number of young labourers in the region. The number of employees aging from 15-24 was reckoned at 22.5 percent, from 25-34 at 17.7 percent and from 35-64 at 25.4 percent.

According to the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC), from 2009 to 2012, it provided vocational training for 80,000 people, 60 percent of whom working in industrial and service sectors.

However, in the 2012-2015 period, the rates of trained workers in the two sectors were only 16.06 percent and 14.26 percent, respectively.

The Cambodian minister said that in the coming time, the country needs to pay special attention to the issue to grab opportunities when integrating into the ASEAN Community.

He asked local young people to make meticulous preparation of education and techniques so as to take advantage of working opportunities at home and abroad.-VNA