As part of the Skills for Employability Programme, British Council is pleased to announce a major international seminar entitled Changing Perceptions of Skills on 14-15 February in Cairo.

The low status of Skills is a major challenge facing societies and economies throughout the world, a significant obstacle to attracting people – and particularly young people - of calibre into jobs upon which the future efficiency and prosperity of their societies depends. To the detriment of the Skills sector, the preference of young people - and just as significantly, their parents – too often remains the traditional white-collar, often office-based, professions. Skills has a considerable image problem and countries around the world are increasingly recognising this and the negative impact it has on developing an effective workforce equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

The emphasis of the international seminar will be on sharing experiences, lessons learned and innovative ideas with a view to identifying constructive approaches and practical recommendations to tackle the low status of skills in societies across the world. It is anticipated that areas for discussion will include policy development to end the ‘ghettoisation’ of Skills, the role of careers guidance in attracting young people to Skills, and the role of media and technology in promoting positive images of skills.

The seminar's invited audience will include employers, policy makers, educational leaders, young people, media representatives and cultural commentators.

For more information please contact:

Nevine Abaza: nevine.abaza@britishcouncil.org (Cairo)

Ines Zaibi : ines.zaibi@britishcouncil.org (Tunis)