Skills, sustainability, and the post-2015 development agenda

Borhene Chakroun, Section Chief, UNESCO

Borhene Chakroun is an engineer and has a PhD in Education Sciences from Bourgogne University in France. His academic work focuses on the recognition and validation of prior learning. Borhene worked during the 1990s, as trainer, chief trainer, and TVET project manager. He has also worked as short-term consultant for the EU, World Bank, and other international organisations before coming to the European Training Foundation (ETF) in 2001. At the ETF, Borhene worked as Senior Human Capital Development specialist. He has also coordinated the ETF’s community of practice on National Qualifications Frameworks and Recognition of Qualifications. He is now Head of the section in charge of TVET at UNESCO and is leading the implementation of the UNESCO TVET strategy adopted in 2009. He coordinated the organisation of the Third International Congress on TVET in Shanghai in 2012. He has authored and co-authored various articles and books in the field of TVET. Much of his most recent work focuses on global trends in reforming TVET systems. 

Download presentation

Deborah Roseveare, Head, Skills beyond School Division, Directorate for Education and Skills, OECD

Ms Deborah Roseveare is responsible for the Skills beyond School Division. Her responsibilities span the PIAAC Survey of Adult Skills, policy analysis and advice on more effective vocational education and training and higher education, working with countries to build more effective skills systems at national and local levels and the OECD Skills Outlook. As Head of the Education and Training Policy Division between 2007 and 2011, she provided policy analysis and advice to help governments develop and implement more effective policies across all levels of education and training. 

A New Zealand and British national, Ms Roseveare worked in the OECD’s Economics Department between 1993 and 2007 providing cross-country and country-specific analysis and policy advice on a broad range of economic and social issues including human capital, public finances, macroeconomics, ageing populations, product markets, labour markets, and fostering entrepreneurship. Between 1976 and 1993, she held various positions in the NZ public service. 

Norbert Schöbel, Team Leader, European Commission

Norbert Schöbel, born 1961 in Munich, studied both political sciences and business management. He started his professional career in Brussels as parliamentary assistant in the European Parliament. He then worked for the representation of Rhineland-Palatinate in Brussels and several years for the Committee of the Regions before joining the European Commission in 2002. Since then he was active in different Commission services, particularly in the Directorate-General Education and Culture, first as policy officer in the field of education, then as Head of Sector for inter-institutional relations. In July 2011, he joined the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion where he coordinated the work of sectoral social dialogue at EU level. Since July 2014 he has been in charge of work-based learning and apprenticeships and recently he became Team leader "Skills for the Young", which also includes the work related to the "European Alliance for Apprenticeships". 

Shyamal Majumdar, Head of UNESCO-UNEVOC

Mr Shyamal Majumdar has been the Head of the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training since 2011. He has worked in the field of TVET for over 20 years as Director General of Colombo Plan Staff College for Technician Education (CPSC) in Manila (2007- 2011); Professor and Head of the Computer Science and Engineering Department at the National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research (NITTTR) in Kolkata, India; Faculty Member of CPSC. He has been engaged as expert in TVET in various capacities through his work in UNESCO Offices in Bangkok, Beijing and Cairo, GTZ and INWEnt the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI), as well as the World Bank. His areas of expertise are TVET, technical teachers training, Information and communication technology (lCT), total quality management (TQM), greening TVET, and qualifications frameworks towards quality assurance in TVET. 

Download presentation

Prof. Dr. Reinhold Weiss: Deputy President and Head of Research of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training

Studies of economics, economic and social history, economic and business education theory, and vocational education theory at the University of Cologne; doctorate at the University of Cologne; honorary professor for vocational education theory at the University of Duisburg - Essen; working at the Cologne-based Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft (“IW”) as deputy head of the Education Policy and Labour Market Policy research department and member of the Managing Board; appointed as Deputy President and Head of Research of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training ("BIBB") in 2005; rresearch is focused on initial and continuing vocational training, company training and personal development, labour market and economics of education.