Ministry of Labour and Social Security Permanent Secretary Zechariah Luhanga says skills development is at the centre of the ministry’s efforts to advance the Grow Zambia Agenda, with human capital identified as a critical driver of productivity, industrialisation, enterprise development and sustainable job creation. Speaking during a stakeholder meeting convened to align skills development, labour-market demands and financing with the Grow Zambia Agenda, Mr Luhanga said Zambia’s skills development system must respond directly to the needs of industry. He said citizens must be equipped with practical, technical, digital, entrepreneurial and managerial skills required in priority sectors such as agriculture, mining, energy, tourism, manufacturing and the digital economy. Mr Luhanga said skills development must be demand-driven and evidence-based, with training institutions aligning their programmes and enrolment with verified labour-market needs. He said reliable labour-market information, employer data, skills mapping and tracer studies would be critical in identifying skills gaps, guiding investment and determining whether training is translating into employment and improved productivity. The Permanent Secretary said the ministry was also prioritising work-based learning, apprenticeships and stronger partnerships with employers to ensure that learners acquire practical workplace experience and competencies that can lead to productive employment or enterprise development. Mr Luhanga noted that skills financing also needed to be better aligned with national priorities. “Of the 52,538 beneficiaries supported through higher-education loans and scholarships, only 32 percent are enrolled in priority skills programmes, with just 17 percent in urgent or high-priority areas. This underscores the need to direct public investment towards skills that Zambia urgently requires,” he said. He said the ministry was working to strengthen Sector Skills Bodies, the National Critical Skills List and skills-financing mechanisms, while improving career guidance to enable learners, parents and training institutions to make informed decisions based on actual opportunities in the labour market. “In line with the President’s vision, Zambia’s education and training system must equip citizens with the practical, technical, digital, entrepreneurial and managerial competencies required by the economy. Investment in skills must be recognised for what it truly is; a critical enabler of productivity, industrialisation, enterprise development and sustainable employment,” Mr Luhanga said. He said the Grow Zambia Agenda places production, enterprise growth, investment, value addition and job creation at the centre of economic transformation. Mr Luhanga said the key test for the Ministry of Labour and Social Security was to assess how economic growth creates productive employment, raises productivity, improves workplace safety, advances decent work and ultimately improves livelihoods. He said Zambia’s economic transformation would depend not only on creating jobs, but also on developing a skilled workforce capable of driving production, enterprise growth and productivity. Mr Luhanga said skills development must therefore remain a central pillar of the Grow Zambia Agenda and a key pathway towards improved livelihoods and sustainable employment.