At the opening ceremony of the Profession Star Festival, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced that in 2018 Hungary will host the EuroSkills competition. He said that Hungary’s hosting of the European championship for young professionals symbolises the step forward taken by the country in the world of vocational training.
Mr. Orbán also pointed out that vocational certificates only make sense if they grant valid access to the labour market. He added that usable knowledge provides a sense of security for everyone.
The Prime Minister stressed that young professionals are important for Hungary, and that if they do not have a future, the country does not have one either. If young people have a future, the whole country can advance, there can be meaningful work and fair wages, he explained. Therefore, the Prime Minister said in his welcoming address, Hungary not only wants to provide young people with vocational certificates, but also with useful knowledge that ensures a future for them.
“We live in a free world and we must set the direction for our lives with free decisions”, the Prime Minister said, adding that there are things which young people do not understand, which is why they have their teachers at their sides. Addressing the teachers, Mr. Orbán said that “the future lies in your hands: the future of our youth, and the future of the country”. The future will be determined by how these young people are formed, he said.
As part of the Profession Star Festival, the national finals of study competitions for vocational trainees are being held (the Outstanding Vocational Student Competition and the National Vocational Study Competition), as well as the national final of the SkillsHungary competition, which is the national round for the EuroSkills and WorldSkills competitions.
At the opening ceremony it was announced that in 2018 Hungary will be the first former communist country to host the final of the EuroSkills competition; an agreement was also signed on this. Hungary won the right to host the competition, ahead of Norway. Altogether 5500 vocational trainees have applied to the take part in the competition, and following regional rounds 192 have proceeded to the national finals.
László Parragh, president of the chief organiser of the event, the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce (MKIK), said that “the aim of the competitions is to increase the social prestige of trades – including highly qualified ones which are based on these”, and to enhance their attraction. Over nine thousand students are expected to attend the festival, who will arrive on 200 buses with the help of MKIK’s regional organisations. A further five to six thousand students are expected to arrive from elementary schools in Budapest. Most of the students are in the process of choosing their future careers.
Mr. Parragh explained that, as a result of the changes implemented since 2010, significant results have been achieved in a number of fields – including that of vocational training. Hungary is on the right track towards establishing a vocational training system which is unique in the region, he said. The President noted that there is no strict division between higher education and vocational training, which is also reflected in the fact that participants in the competitions featured in the Profession Star Festival include logistics administrators and mechatronic technicians.