Enhancing Mutual Recognition and Regional Cooperation for Skills and Job Qualifications in the APEC Region

In line with the priorities of the APEC Human Resources Development Working Group to facilitate the mobility of labor and skills development and to develop common understanding about qualifications, skills, and professional recognition, this project seeks to raise awareness regarding the achievements and best practices of existing initiatives to mutually recognize skills and job qualifications and to build human resource development (HRD) capacity among APEC member economies.

Through literature research and interviews with 16 organizations from the public and private sectors across 10 APEC economies, the project has assembled eight case profiles of initiatives in the APEC region. Each initiative was chosen through a quantitative and qualitative assessment process ensuring that the selected initiatives represented best practices in multiple areas and that they could present a good mix of participating economies well-distributed both geographically and economically. The resulting group of initiatives also include efforts led by both the public and private sectors.

This report consolidates findings on common challenges and best practice recommendations for APEC economies to enhance the effectiveness of skills and job qualification recognition initiatives and related regional cooperation activities.