New Delhi, Apr 9 (KNN) The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has partnered with the World Economic Forum (WEF) to establish the ‘India Skills Accelerator,’ a national public-private collaboration platform aimed at addressing India’s workforce development challenges.
The initiative was discussed during a high-level roundtable at Kaushal Bhawan in New Delhi.
The Skills Accelerator will focus on three primary objectives: improving awareness about future skills requirements, enhancing collaboration among stakeholders, and upgrading institutional structures to support a more responsive skilling ecosystem.
This comes at a critical time when 65 per cent of organisations cite skill gaps as a major barrier to progress amid rapid technological and economic changes.
The initiative will be led by Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Education, with Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, Minister of State for Education and Development of North-Eastern Region, serving as co-chair.
From the private sector, Shobana Kamineni, Executive Chairperson, Apollo HealthCo, and Sanjiv Bajaj, Chairman and Managing Director, Bajaj Finserv, will also act as co-chairs.
In his opening remarks, Minister Chaudhary emphasised that India’s demographic advantage can only be fully realised if skilling systems remain agile and aligned with global opportunities.
“India today stands at the confluence of three powerful forces – demographic advantage, digital transformation, and a deep developmental commitment,” he emphasised.
“With the world’s largest youth population and a vibrant skilling ecosystem, we are uniquely positioned to become the Skill Capital of the World,” he stated.
Dr. Majumdar highlighted India’s opportunity to position itself as a global epicentre of next-generation talent, particularly in fields like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and cloud computing.
He noted that the National Education Policy has already initiated transformative changes by promoting flexibility, vocational pathways, and digital skilling.
Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director, World Economic Forum, expressed support for the initiative, stating, “By strengthening alignment across the skills ecosystem, this initiative will help close critical skills gaps, support the growth of India’s digital and innovation-driven economy, and enable more people to thrive in a rapidly evolving world of work.”
The roundtable participants emphasised the need for comprehensive analysis of India’s skilling ecosystem and identified 10-12 high-impact priorities with measurable outcomes.
They also discussed establishing dedicated working groups to guide implementation and track progress through WEF’s Global Learning Network, enabling peer learning and global benchmarking.
The session included participation from senior leadership of the WEF, MSDE, National Council for Vocational Education and Training, Directorate General of Training, National Skill Development Corporation, as well as key representatives from the Ministry of Education, University Grants Commission, All India Council for Technical Education, National Council of Educational Research and Training, and the Central Board of Secondary Education.
(KNN Bureau)
