The Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation (SEAMEO) plans to form a consortium to create an exchange programme for vocational education students in the region by this October.
The programme aims to share vocational knowledge and boost the number of students who can take on the challenge of working in other countries in the region, in preparation for the Asean single market.
"There has been a dramatic increase in the demand of skilled staff in this region as Southeast Asian countries have become more industrialised in recent years," SEAMEO Secretariat director Gatot Hari Priowirjanto told a seminar in Chiang Mai yesterday.
Vocational student exchange plans could help plug the gap, he said.
Member countries must prepare vocational graduates so they can work anywhere in the region when the Asean Economic Community is launched at the end of the year.
Chaipreuk: Eyes more student opportunities
However, Mr Gatot admitted most blue-collar workers in this region are not ready to work outside their countries due to a combination of lacking connections, and language barriers.
Student exchange programmes overseen by vocational colleges could help prepare students for work outside their countries, and preparations must start early.
Mr Gatot said the number of exchange students among vocational colleges in Asean, currently under 20,000, is low, and participating countries should set a target to increase it.
Mr Gatot said all members of the consortium will focus on student exchange programmes as it will be part of their curriculum.
In the consortium, all members will be divided into five groups, which are agriculture/fishery, manufacture/machinery, hotel accommodation and hospitality, food and beverage, and the automotive industry.
Chaipreuk Sereerak, the Office of the Vocational Education Commission's secretary-general, said that Thai vocational colleges have student exchange programmes with Laos, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Welcoming the move, he said he believed the consortium would give Thai vocational students an opportunity to study in more advanced countries such as Singapore and Malaysia.