A unique opportunity has come up on the sidelines of WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017, enabling youngsters to have their voice heard on the future of vocational skills.

The first International TVET Youth Forum is being held from 14th to 15th of October, alongside the 44th edition of the world’s largest and most prestigious skills competition. Since August, participants from different corners of the globe have teamed up, through online forums, in ‘think tanks’ formed to address issues central to the future role of technical and vocational education and training, TVET.

Supported by professional facilitators and expert mentors, more than 3,000 chat messages have been exchanged between participants ahead of the forum. Now virtual connections are being replaced by actual connections, as they meet for the first time in Abu Dhabi with the aim of ensuring the ideas and desires of youth help to ensure vocational skills and training.

During the youth forum at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, ADNEC, 300 young professionals from 70 countries will be empowered by inspiring insights from leading experts in a variety of skill areas and the TVET ecosystem. They will participate in workshops and breakout sessions to finalise a youth declaration on the future of skills and TVET.

This declaration will be presented to global decision-makers on the opening day of the WorldSkills Conference 2017, taking place on 16th and 17th October at ADNEC. About half of the youth forum participants have been selected from across the UAE, with a range of international participants giving the event a truly global flavour.

"I really think that young people with different backgrounds, in an environment that makes them feel free to express their ideas, can create innovative solutions," said Giovanni Shiroma of Brazil, who participated in the online forum focussing on happiness and tolerance. His Emirati teammate, Fatima Al Yousuf, added, "To me, the principle of inclusiveness in any workspace makes sense because it means you have a diverse range of people looking at solutions with different visions."

Almaha Al Saman Al Nuami from the UAE believes the youth forum has allowed young people to think about and devise "smarter methods that will enable students and experts to interact and talk about the future, and how current and future generations will adapt to it." Meanwhile, Peer-Mike Sikma of Germany explained, "Academic education is important for learning about problems that have already been solved, but vocational education offers us the opportunity to try to forecast the needs, changes, and problems of tomorrow.

"Therefore, TVET is about developing ideas and solutions out of different ways of thinking. This is what makes TVET so special for us, and for our future."

Participants have also opened a window on their own way of thinking ahead of the forum, with Tania Nascimento Gaspar of Mexico describing "skills, communication, creativity and hard work" as the pathway to "the smart city of the future."

Brian Perry of Trinidad & Tobago believes investment in a younger workforce will see them gain the experience and knowledge that allows them to "train and teach other millennials," while Ana Maria Cosma from Romania said, "I think each person is born with some special qualities, and it is very important for young people to find the specific thing they are good at and then develop their skills in that field."

Alia Alkaabi of the UAE expressed the view that "technology is giving us a spur to create new jobs that never existed before," and that it should be viewed through the prism of "transforming jobs, rather than replacing them."

Fellow Emirati Noor Abdulla AlShamsi added, "TVET provides students with the appropriate tools to make sure their vision can be used in the real world, and to promote innovation and creativity."

Meanwhile, speaking about the importance of social entrepreneurship, Maitha Salem Al Memari of the UAE, said, "In my opinion, there should be more focus on social entrepreneurship, in the Middle East and globally, as it not only incorporates skills but also ensures sustainability. If a community and its people encourage and support modern-day skills and education, and are not afraid of change, we will achieve prosperity because society will be willing to adapt to a constantly changing world, which, I believe, is what is needed in order to be global citizens and to compete and contribute."

On a similar note, Buhle Makama of South Africa, said, "It is vital for a person to develop an entrepreneurial mindset so that they can push boundaries and take risks; it gives them, and those around them, an opportunity to grow."

Welcome addresses at the youth forum will be given by Hussain Ibrahim Al Hammadi, Minister of Education, Shamma bint Suhail Faris Al Mazrui, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, and Mubarak Saeed Al Shamsi, Director-General of the Abu Dhabi Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training. Among those delivering the inspirational keynote speeches will be Alia Al Mansoori, a teenage Emirati inventor and aspiring astronaut.