Second CAREC Working Group Meeting on Skills Development signs MOU to advance green skills development in the region

The Second Meeting of the CAREC Working Group on Skills Development (CAREC WGSD) was held from 3-5 April 2025 in Baku, Azerbaijan. This significant event brought together around 40 high-level officials from CAREC participating countries and regional agricultural universities to discuss and advance green skills development in the region. The event is sponsored by TA 6806-REG: Strengthening Green Skills Development under the CAREC Program financed by the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific.

The meeting featured a high-level session with Deputy Ministers of Education from CAREC countries. Mr. Jeyhun Karamov, Director of State Agency on Vocational Education, Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ms. Lyaziza Sabyrova, Regional Head, Regional Cooperation and Integration, Central and West Asia Department; Ms. Sofia Shakil, Director, Human and Social Development Sector Group; and Mr. Watanabe Katsuya, Ambassador, Embassy of Japan, Azerbaijan, participated in the opening session. A key highlight of the event was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on strengthening regional cooperation in skills development among CAREC member countries.

Workshops on mainstreaming green skills and just transition, as well as climate-smart agriculture, were led by the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization and Wageningen University for Social and Economic Research. These workshops aimed to build capacity, validate needs assessments, and develop demonstration projects.

The event concluded with site visits to relevant research and development facilities in Baku, providing participants with hands-on learning experiences and opportunities for knowledge exchange.