Foreword

Vocational education and training (VET) is an important part of education systems around the world. In an era of changing skill needs in the labour market, as a result of global megatrends such as automation and population ageing, VET is well-placed to equip students with the skills the labour market needs and provide education and training opportunities for adults. Likewise, VET can play an important role in the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, by developing in-demand skills to avoid hiring difficulties among employers, providing youth at risk of being not in education, employment, or training (NEET) with opportunities to acquire work experience through apprenticeships and other forms of work-based learning, and creating avenues for up-skilling or re-skilling of workers who have been displaced, or in need of training to adapt to a changing work environment.