India, UK begin talks on recognising and mapping skill gaps
India has begun discussions with the UK on mapping of skill gaps and mutual recognition of skills between the two countries looking to tap international job opportunities for its young and growing workforce.
To begin with, India is exploring the possibility of linking its National Career Service (NCS) portal with the UK government's job portal to get a sense of demand for skilled workers in the UK, while facilitating industry-specific exchange and migration of workers in labour-intensive sectors, such as textiles, under the India-UK Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement (MMPA).
A senior government official told ET that at a recent meeting of the India-UK MMPA joint working group, the ministry of labour and employment called for a need to promote cross-border job matching and narrowing of skill gaps with the UK for safe and regular migration of skilled workers between the two countries.
The Indian delegation included officials from the ministries of external affairs, skills development & entrepreneurship, home affairs, education and labour & employment.
According to the official, India wants UK employers to post job vacancies on the NCS portal. The two countries also deliberated on the need for development of international reference classification for occupations for easier mobility of workforce through the International Labour Organisation. «India also emphasised on the need to sign the Social Security Agreement (SSA) between India and UK for the welfare of international migrant workers of the two
