Skills, Not Degrees, Will Drive Future As Technology Replaces Old Jobs: Union minister

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that the 21st century will be knowledge-based and technology-driven.

New Delhi: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday said that abilities and skills will drive the future instead of degrees as old jobs have vanished because of disruptive development and innovation, reported news agency PTI. Ahead of the third meeting of the G20 Education Working Group later this week, Pradhan was giving a speech at this conference.

"Skills and competencies will drive the future rather than degrees. There will be a constant competition between God gifted human intelligence and Artificial Intelligence (AI)," Pradhan said in the keynote address at the conference themed 'Deep Tech with a Focus on Advanced Technology in Future of Work.' "Old jobs are vanishing due to disruptive innovation and technology. New jobs are emerging but our workforce needs continuous skilling, reskilling and upskilling. Hence, we must think of new approaches to prepare youth for future jobs," he added as quoted by PTI.

"Material" will not have any effect on the civilisation's future, Pradhan asserted. "Human nature is going to influence the human future." The minister said that the 21st century will be knowledge-based and technology-driven.

"Guided by its civilisational ethos and as a natural hub of talent, captive market and resources, India is going to play a leading role in fulfilling the global aspirations of the 21st century," he asserted.

"Internet, mobility and global connectivity provides us with an opportunity to think about global requirements. We have to come together to convert this opportunity for India’s youth as well as for those belonging to the Global South," he said.

Third G20 Education Working Group Meeting 

During the conference, representatives from industry, academia, the startup ecosystem, and other stakeholders will discuss ways to reimagine the skilling ecosystem, train global citizens for the future, and make India a global center for skilled labor.

Foundation literacy and numeracy, tech-enabled learning, future of work and research collaboration are among the priority areas for deliberations during the third G20 Education Working Group meeting scheduled from April 27 to 29.

Official-level deliberations on the four identified priority areas—foundational literacy and numeracy, technology-enabled learning, the future of work, and research collaboration—would take place during the meeting.

The precursor events that will be held prior to the meeting include a conference on "deep tech" and "transforming logistics for coastal economies," a workshop on "future of work" and skill architecture, a seminar on "building capacities for lifelong learning," and an exhibition on "future of work."

The G20 Education Working Group held its first meeting earlier this year in Chennai, and it held its second meeting last month in Amritsar. The education group would hold three additional meetings before reaching a consensus in June of this year.

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