APEC representatives discuss investing in people, skills training in Jiangsu

The concept of investing in people was the focus of a forum on human resources development that opened on Monday in Nanjing, Jiangsu province.

Over 150 representatives from APEC economies, the secretariat, observers, and relevant international organizations attended the 8th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting to share the latest policies and case experiences. They also reached consensus on jointly addressing new challenges in human resources development.

The consensus includes aligning vocational skills training with industrial development needs, adapting to cutting-edge technological changes, building a lifetime vocational skills training and continuing education system, enhancing public digital skills training, and cross-border experience sharing in vocational training.

Hao Bin, assistant director-general of the International Labour Organization, said that in the age of artificial intelligence, specialized and highly skilled professionals have stronger competitiveness in employment and are less vulnerable to technological displacement. The world urgently needs to scale up the cultivation of skilled personnel, he added.

As a key APEC ministerial-level gathering, the meeting also made accelerating the development of modern-era human resources a key direction for future APEC cooperation. A joint statement put forward six policy proposals in the field of employment, including coordinated employment-economic policies, constructing an employment-friendly industrial system, support and training for diverse worker groups, improved employment and entrepreneurship services, and labor rights protection.

The meeting also passed an attached document focusing on AI for the first time. According to Yu Jiadong, vice-minister of human resources and social security, it provides important guidance for economies to scientifically address the profound impact of AI on the employment landscape and to explore new models for digital and intelligent human resources development.

Tao Jiayi contributed to this story.