Page 424 - 2018 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
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8 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
with technical skills in China. Some 43 million of them to strengthen exchanges and better serve society in
are skilled workers, only five percent all employees. Wu a letter congratulating the association on the 100th
believes vocational education is crucial to the Made in anniversary of its founding in May of 2017 (Xinhua).
China 2025 plan to reform the manufacturing sector and
change the reputation of China’s manufactured goods. With the world’s most populous country, over 1.3
Made in China 2025 lays out strategies for switching billion people, and the second biggest economy, China
from low-end manufacturing to more value-added has to pursue a sustainable development path. The
production, with domestic manufacturers expected country wishes to maintain full-employment status
to make technological breakthroughs in a number for the working-age population. Millions of low-skilled
of emerging industries, from numerical control tools Chinese workers are finding it more difficult to get new
and robotics to aerospace equipment and new energy jobs and they need to sign up for programs that teach
vehicles. China has about 13,300 vocational schools and trade skills, such as building construction, maintenance,
colleges. In 2014, there were about 18 million students and auto repair and appliance repairs. Some people
in secondary vocational schools compared with 12.7 like to work with their hands and get restless if they
million in 1996. The number of students enrolled at have to sit for lengthy periods of time at a desk. They
vocational colleges stood at 10 million in 2015, compared can succeed in the blue-collar field but need parental
to 1.23 million in 1996. Along with the increasing number support. High-tech job skills can lead to lucrative
of students, investment in vocational education has careers. The jobs require proper certification and
expanded in the past 19 years. According to the report, training, which can be received at officially recognized
annual spending rose from 114 billion yuan in 2006 to trade schools where students learn by doing to prove
345 billion yuan in 2013, an increase of 17 percent per they can accomplish required tasks. The certificate is
year, still short of government expectations. The State a ticket to higher paying jobs for a low-skilled worker.
Council, China’s cabinet, wants vocational colleges to The biggest beneficiaries of more enhanced nationwide
account for more than half of all institutions of higher vocational education programs would be rural residents
education, but according to Minister of Education and migrant workers, who flee farming villages to work
Yuan Guiren, the number is closer to 46 percent. The in China’s big cities. Poor farming families want a better
ministry plans to change the picture by turning some life for their children, but would not feel disappointed
universities and colleges into application-oriented if their children were hired in blue-collar jobs that
technical institutions, and encouraging enterprises to run allow them to earn a decent salary. Vocational schools
vocational institutions (Gu). and colleges can serve a useful role in China’s Belt &
Road Initiative as well, especially in western China. On
Secondary technical/vocational schools were a cultural level, the best places to open up vocational
designed to enroll junior secondary school graduates education programs would be in the rural region where
for a 3-to-5-year program of study in China. Graduates they can be appreciated most of all (McGregor).
are expected to be work-ready having gained
comprehensive professional abilities and all-round Technical and vocational education and training
competencies to directly engage in the forefront of (TVET) is an important component of the Chinese
production, service, technology and management. education system that has been given more attention
However, vocational schools are now facing certain in the past years due to the crucial impact it has on
challenges where curriculum and training methods enhancing national employment and on training a
have become outdated—barely keeping pace with the qualified labor force necessary to boost the Chinese
changing labor market needs and trends. Instructors economy. TVET is mainly provided for in the Vocational
often do not demonstrate practical skills themselves Education Law of the People’s Republic of China adopted
and students lack sufficient hands-on training and in 1996. It contains regulations on vocational school
workplace experience opportunities. The Chinese education at various levels and on vocational education
government is now working to remedy this situation in various forms. Non-state vocational education
and part of the solution is to encourage international providers are very present in China. They mainly offer
collaboration within the vocational education sector short-term certificate courses and have a degree of
(BCCIE). President Xi Jinping even told the China autonomy in decision-making, therefore being more
Vocational Education Association (CVEA) to work with adaptable to the needs of the changing market. Non-
domestic and overseas vocational education workers state TVET providers can be divided into two groups:
424
with technical skills in China. Some 43 million of them to strengthen exchanges and better serve society in
are skilled workers, only five percent all employees. Wu a letter congratulating the association on the 100th
believes vocational education is crucial to the Made in anniversary of its founding in May of 2017 (Xinhua).
China 2025 plan to reform the manufacturing sector and
change the reputation of China’s manufactured goods. With the world’s most populous country, over 1.3
Made in China 2025 lays out strategies for switching billion people, and the second biggest economy, China
from low-end manufacturing to more value-added has to pursue a sustainable development path. The
production, with domestic manufacturers expected country wishes to maintain full-employment status
to make technological breakthroughs in a number for the working-age population. Millions of low-skilled
of emerging industries, from numerical control tools Chinese workers are finding it more difficult to get new
and robotics to aerospace equipment and new energy jobs and they need to sign up for programs that teach
vehicles. China has about 13,300 vocational schools and trade skills, such as building construction, maintenance,
colleges. In 2014, there were about 18 million students and auto repair and appliance repairs. Some people
in secondary vocational schools compared with 12.7 like to work with their hands and get restless if they
million in 1996. The number of students enrolled at have to sit for lengthy periods of time at a desk. They
vocational colleges stood at 10 million in 2015, compared can succeed in the blue-collar field but need parental
to 1.23 million in 1996. Along with the increasing number support. High-tech job skills can lead to lucrative
of students, investment in vocational education has careers. The jobs require proper certification and
expanded in the past 19 years. According to the report, training, which can be received at officially recognized
annual spending rose from 114 billion yuan in 2006 to trade schools where students learn by doing to prove
345 billion yuan in 2013, an increase of 17 percent per they can accomplish required tasks. The certificate is
year, still short of government expectations. The State a ticket to higher paying jobs for a low-skilled worker.
Council, China’s cabinet, wants vocational colleges to The biggest beneficiaries of more enhanced nationwide
account for more than half of all institutions of higher vocational education programs would be rural residents
education, but according to Minister of Education and migrant workers, who flee farming villages to work
Yuan Guiren, the number is closer to 46 percent. The in China’s big cities. Poor farming families want a better
ministry plans to change the picture by turning some life for their children, but would not feel disappointed
universities and colleges into application-oriented if their children were hired in blue-collar jobs that
technical institutions, and encouraging enterprises to run allow them to earn a decent salary. Vocational schools
vocational institutions (Gu). and colleges can serve a useful role in China’s Belt &
Road Initiative as well, especially in western China. On
Secondary technical/vocational schools were a cultural level, the best places to open up vocational
designed to enroll junior secondary school graduates education programs would be in the rural region where
for a 3-to-5-year program of study in China. Graduates they can be appreciated most of all (McGregor).
are expected to be work-ready having gained
comprehensive professional abilities and all-round Technical and vocational education and training
competencies to directly engage in the forefront of (TVET) is an important component of the Chinese
production, service, technology and management. education system that has been given more attention
However, vocational schools are now facing certain in the past years due to the crucial impact it has on
challenges where curriculum and training methods enhancing national employment and on training a
have become outdated—barely keeping pace with the qualified labor force necessary to boost the Chinese
changing labor market needs and trends. Instructors economy. TVET is mainly provided for in the Vocational
often do not demonstrate practical skills themselves Education Law of the People’s Republic of China adopted
and students lack sufficient hands-on training and in 1996. It contains regulations on vocational school
workplace experience opportunities. The Chinese education at various levels and on vocational education
government is now working to remedy this situation in various forms. Non-state vocational education
and part of the solution is to encourage international providers are very present in China. They mainly offer
collaboration within the vocational education sector short-term certificate courses and have a degree of
(BCCIE). President Xi Jinping even told the China autonomy in decision-making, therefore being more
Vocational Education Association (CVEA) to work with adaptable to the needs of the changing market. Non-
domestic and overseas vocational education workers state TVET providers can be divided into two groups:
424
