Myanmar and Singapore have signed an agreement to establish a Singapore-Myanmar Vocational Training Institute (SMVTI) in a bid to develop skilled human resources in the recently-opened Southeast Asian country.
“The SMVTI aims to provide vocational training for Myanmar youths, and build a pool of skilled workers which will help to attract foreign investments into Myanmar,” Robert Chua, ambassador of Singapore to Myanmar, said.
The SMVTI will also help build Myanmar’s capacity in vocational education by training Myanmar instructors, he added.
The SMVTI initiative was first announced during the state visit of Singapore President Dr Tony Tan to Myanmar in April last year.
The memorandum of understanding on the program was signed by Director-General of the Technical and Vocational Education Department of the Ministry of Science and Technology U Zaw Win and Robert Chua in Nay Pyi Taw.
The Myanmar government has provided the premises of the former Burma Polytechnic School at No.123 Natmauk Road, Yangon, to house the government-to-government human resource development project.
Minister for science and technology Ko Ko Oo said the deal will contribute to economic and human resources development and capacity building for the staff in public administration.
SMVTI courses will be open for public registration after setting up the training facilities, Singapore Embassy in Myanmar said in a statement.
The SMVTI will comprise four training schools of Hospitality and Tourism, Electrical Skills and Electronics, Facilities Management and Engineering Services.
Singapore’s vocational education provider, the Institute of Technical Education Education Services (ITEES), will design the course curricula and administer the SMVTI in partnership with the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Singaporean embassy added.
Apart from the SMVTI, Singapore also supports Myanmar’s human resource development through the Myanmar-Singapore Training Centre (MSTC) in Yangon, which has provided training for Myanmar civil servants since 2001.
Singapore also works with Myanmar under the Singapore-Myanmar Technical Cooperation Programme (SMTCP), a technical assistance package designed to support Myanmar’s ASEAN Chairmanship and build capacity in economic development, human resource development and public administration.
“These initiatives show Singapore’s commitment to support Myanmar’s reforms as well as strengthen our close bilateral ties,” Chua said.
“The SMVTI will also further strengthen our people-to-people relations, as our Singapore management team and lecturers work closely with their Myanmar counterparts to make this project a success.”
