Work is being done to create a register of companies participating in the process of dual education. This was announced during the regular meeting of Deputy Minister of the Economy Alexander Manolev with representatives of the small and medium business. The meeting concentrated on the staffing problem and was attended also by the Deputy Minister of education and science Denitsa Sacheva, experts from the Ministry of labor and social policy, sector and industry organizations, etc.
“When talking about the problem of insufficient staff, there are two solutions. One is quick – importing workers from abroad, but the other one is sustainable – improving the connection between education and the labor market, and creating mechanisms and stimuli to keep young people here”, said Deputy Minister Manolev. He stressed that one of the most important measures is the greater application of dual education and presented a part of the actions taken in this regard. “We suggest creating a register of the companies which take part in the process of dual education, so that pupils and parents can much more easily be directed toward socially responsible companies which can provide a job and a coach for dual education”, explained Alexander Manolev. The Ministry of the economy has completed the first stage of creating an interactive map by sectors in the country, with the intention to also include professional gymnasiums in it. “This will allow for much more effective planning, because the information about the needs of the labor market by regions and the specialists prepared by local schools will be summarized in one place”, added the Deputy Minister.
The developed draft for a contract between pupil and employer is also expected to stimulate the process of unfolding dual education. “We analyzed German, Swiss, and Austrian contracts for dual education, which were provided to us by our services on commercial and economic matters, and based on them, we prepared the sample contract. There will be an option to make changes to it, but we hope that this will be a step toward encouraging dual education”, added the Deputy Minister.
Discussions are being started regarding a new concept for professional education, announced Deputy Minister Sacheva. She explained that the aim is to open classes for professions both pupils and the business are interested in. Enrolling into protected professions is also envisaged, providing various stimuli from the state. According to data she presented, professional education encompasses approx. 41% of pupils, whereas the MES team’s aim is for that share to reach 50%. “Today, 1,000 pupils in 17 gymnasiums are included in dual education and through the projects we implement, and together with the business locally, we are working to constantly grow this number”, also said Deputy Minister Sacheva. She also noted the serious investments in educational infrastructure, which is of great importance for the quality of professional education – over BGN 600 million is the financing under OP “Regions in growth” alone. According to the Deputy Minister, professional education may also be the means for many of the children who do not attend school to be brought back into the classroom, because this way, they will gain a profession and an alternative for success.
Representatives of the business expressed their readiness to participate in more information campaigns and organize open-access days at their companies in the event that specific schools are interested. In their opinion, awareness needs to be improved also among parents about the opportunities for their children’s participation in certain sectors, so that they can direct the children toward them.