– Jayant Chaudhary 

Bengaluru, 10 December 2025: As part of ongoing cooperation under the 3^rd Australia–India Education and Skills Council (AIESC) Meeting, India and Australia held a High-Level Roundtable on Skilling Partnership at Kaushal Bhawan, New Delhi. The meeting brought together senior representatives from NCVET, NSDC, Green Jobs, DGT, NSDC International, and industry experts while the Australian side included leaders from Jobs & Skills Australia, the Australian Mining & Automotive Skills Alliance, and ASQA.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), highlighted the need for greater coherence across institutions on both sides, such as ASQA and NCVET on the regulatory front, and India’s Sector Skill Councils alongside Jobs and Skills Australia, and underscored the shared commitment to elevating the esteem of vocational education, summarising the key action points discussed during the bilateral meeting and the 3rd AIESC Skills Session held on 8^th December 2025.

Deliberations focused on aligning skill ecosystems to keep pace with rapid technological shifts, including AI-led transformation, evolving industry needs, and sectoral talent shortages. Participants noted that both countries face similar challenges in preparing their workforce for green sectors, clean energy, advanced manufacturing, agri-tech, and digital occupations. They emphasised the importance of industry-linked training models, flexible learning pathways, and strengthened trainer capacity.

Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education, Shri Jayant Chaudhary, noted that India and Australia are taking significant steps toward developing a globally mobile, industry-aligned talent pool. He stressed the need for a time-bound roadmap to achieve measurable outcomes in joint certification, global skills recognition, and trusted assessment systems.

Hon. Andrew Giles MP, Australia’s Minister for Skills & Training, reaffirmed Australia’s commitment to deepening collaboration and at the same time mentioned the need to navigate through the challenges to operationalise and deliver tangible outcomes. He also spoke about the progress made by both countries for institutional engagement between ITIs, NSTIs, and TAFEs.

Both sides expressed strong support for promoting joint training initiatives, trainer and assessor exchanges, and pilot programmes for placement of skilled candidates in priority job roles. Participants also endorsed establishing an Annual India–Australia Skills Meet to review progress, share best practices, and sustain long-term cooperation.

The Australian delegation shared insights on future labour market trends, including rising demand for higher-skilled roles, quicker workforce transition mechanisms, and the growing relevance of clean energy, agri-food systems, and services-led growth. They also underscored the economic impact of AI and the need for adaptive regulatory frameworks that enable innovation.

India outlined ongoing reforms in the VET ecosystem, including strengthened equivalence pathways, enhancements to the National Skills Qualifications Framework, and the development of Centres of Excellence in emerging sectors.

Ms Anna Faithful, Deputy Secretary, Skills and Training and Ms Archana Mayaram, Economic Advisor (IC), MSDE, while summarising the discussions mentioned about the shared commitment of both the countries to make skilling aspirational and devise regular channels for engagement.

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India proposed for an Annual India–Australia Skills Meet to Drive Harmonised Standards

Bengaluru, 09 December 2025: As part of the 3rd Australia–India Education and Skills Council (AIESC) Meeting in New Delhi, India and Australia convened a substantive bilateral dialogue to advance cooperation in skills development, workforce mobility, and the rapidly growing sports economy. The bilateral meeting was co-chaired by Shri Jayant Chaudhary, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship & Minister of State for Education, and Hon. Andrew Giles MP, Minister for Skills & Training, Commonwealth of Australia.

The deliberations acknowledged the strong upward trajectory in India–Australia relations and reinforced the need to translate this momentum into well-structured pathways for the movement of skilled professionals. Both sides agreed to accelerate operationalisation of the Mutual Recognition of Qualifications (MRQ) mechanism and to co-design bridge courses that align competencies and facilitate seamless mobility. Particular emphasis was laid on preparing skilled workers for global standards in advanced construction, given Australia’s infrastructure expansion ahead of major sporting events.

A key element of the discussions revolved around the strategic opportunities emerging from India’s bid for the 2030 Commonwealth Games and Australia’s hosting of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics and Paralympics. The sports and physical wellness sector was collectively recognised as a sunrise industry with significant employment prospects and potential to contribute nearly 2% to India’s GDP. Australia’s global leadership in sports management, sports technology, was identified as a complementary strength to India’s expanding sports manufacturing and gig-economy landscape.

Further collaboration was proposed between India’s skilling institutions — including ITIs and National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs) — and Australia’s TAFE network, with joint work expected in areas spanning mining, digital and IT skills, hospitality, green jobs, renewable energy, and logistics.

Shri Jayant Chaudhary also underlined India’s commitment to future-oriented skills under the Skilling for AI Readiness (SOAR) initiative, along with the importance of joint ethical frameworks and standards for digital adoption. The ministers agreed that responsible and high-quality workforce mobility must guide bilateral cooperation going forward.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Jayant Chaudhary stated: “India and Australia are natural partners in shaping the global workforce of the future. By strengthening pathways, aligning standards, and leveraging each other’s sectoral strengths, we can enable youth to access global opportunities while supporting dynamic industry needs in both our economies. I also propose that we establish an annual India-Australia Skills Meet, held alternately in India and Australia. This platform can drive harmonisation and equivalence in selected skills, deepen institutional partnerships, and keep our training ecosystems aligned with industry needs in both countries.”

“Australia is one of India’s most important partners in this space. We also explored new avenues in sports-related skilling ahead of major global events, including joint training, curriculum development and industry partnerships,” he further added.

Hon. Andrew Giles MP remarked that Australia deeply values its partnership with India and as our nations prepare for major sporting and economic milestones, skills cooperation will play a vital role in ensuring shared prosperity and measurable impact for our people.

The meeting witnessed participation from senior officials of MSDE, the Directorate General of Training, NCVET, NSDC and representatives from the Australian Department of Education and its Skills and Training agencies.

The bilateral session concluded with a shared resolve to maintain high-level engagement and fast-track collaborative models that enhance training quality, strengthen global mobility, and contribute to building future-ready skill ecosystems in both countries.

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