Call for Proposal - Education and Training Engagement of Skills Anticipation for Construction & Real Estate

Introduction

In 2016, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia developed its Vision 2030[1] based on three integrated pillars including a vital society, a thriving economy and an ambitious nation to achieve the objective of the kingdom to be a pioneering and successful global model of excellence.

Flowing from this Vision, the KSA has prioritized workforce development to steer the country towards a more productive and knowledge economy. For that, it has developed strategies and interventions such as the Human Capability Development Program (HCDP)[2] and the Labour Market Strategy (LMS) to promote skills development and address skills mismatches. Aligned with Vision 2030, the HCDP aims to ensure required capabilities for its citizens to compete globally by developing basic and future skills, as well as enhancing knowledge. It also focuses on upskilling citizens by providing lifelong learning opportunities, supporting innovation and entrepreneurship culture, and developing and activating policies and enablers to ensure KSA competitiveness.

The original LMS was developed in 2021 and is the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development’s (MHRSD) strategy to improve employment outcomes in the Kingdom through developing skills and capabilities for existing and emerging productive sectors. With a relevance to skills development, in particular, the LMS emphasis is on training policies and programs, pursuing career growth, developing human capital in collaboration with education and training authorities, and an increased focus on skills and occupational planning, which includes establishing sector skills councils and national occupational standards (NOS).

The Skills and Training Deputyship

The Skills and Training Deputyship oversees a number of skills related initiatives. The LMS was refreshed in 2023 to include a number of skills-based initiatives to be managed by the Deputyship structured around skills planning, skills development, skills recognition and skills management. One of the most significant national initiatives within the skills deputyship is the establishment of 12 Sector Skills Councils (SSCs)[3] in December 2023. The SSCs have now been operating over a year with the output of the Sector Skills Frameworks (SSF) and sector intelligence reports to help inform employers and the education and training sector what skills are needed to grow productivity in sectors[4]. The SSCs are now moving from start up to established status with a new focus for 2025. This includes changing the governance structure and appointing a Secretary General to oversee the next phase of development.

The HCDP has delegated two specific initiatives to the Deputyship the first one is the Skills Accelerator and the second is the National Skills Framework and Skills Recognition system. Both of these project come with their own reporting lines and budget. More details of these projects can be found in the HCDP delivery plan[5]. Both projects involve aspects of scope that are related to the development of the skills eco system with the skills recognition project including aspects such as micro credentials and RPL as part of the requirements.

Other areas of development within the Deputyship include the development of National Occupational Standards, national licensing systems and national skills policy and governance. See the website link for an overview of all the Skills and Training Deputyship projects https://www.hrsd.gov.sa/en/skillsandtrain

ILO Skills Anticipation Study

ILO has supported a number of different initiatives in the Skills Deputyship during phase 2 from 2022-2024. These include: Technical assistance on NOS development, the development of a national skills policy, technical assistance on the SSCs. ILO supported the SSCs with a review of the set-up governance and operations of the SSCs and conducting a thorough skills anticipation and matching study in the Construction and Real Estate sector. This pilot study highlighted a number of important areas of collaboration and alignment in building the data and information systems needed to support sectorial development and reporting. A key output of the skills anticipation is the development of NOS in priority occupations and the implementation of education and training initiatives involving all stakeholders from across the skills eco system to respond to employer needs in the sector.

The Skills Anticipation Report for the Construction and Real Estate Sector will be submitted to MHRSD end of March 2025 and will then require the implementation phase to start. In preparation for the implementation of interventions to address the identified priority occupations and skills gaps, this phase of the project requires a education and training expert to support the engagement and documentation required to ensure successful stakeholder engagement with the education and training sector and to define the role of SSCs in contributing to the education and training response to the sector.

This consultancy will set the foundation for a discussion between the demand side of the sector and the supply side of the sector to refine how to address the sector challenges based on the implementation of specific priority occupation standards.

Objective of the consultancy

The key objectives of the assignment are:

• Ensure skills eco system stakeholder engagement by conducting consultations and workshops with key stakeholders in the education and training sector as it relates to the potential of construction and real estate interventions.
• Deliver in person workshops with the supply and demand side to facilitate dialogue on how the supply side can respond to sector needs to support collective system development with all stakeholders
• Write workshop report for how the demand and supply sides of the system and collaborate to implement the proposed interventions
• Write the policy implications and recommendations for the stakeholders in the skills systems

Key Responsibilities and Scope of Work

Workshop Preparation and Engagement

• Conduct initial consultation with key stakeholder identified by MHRSD through online meetings/interviews to help formulate the workshop. A minimum of 8 consultations needs to be conducted, including key stakeholders within MHRSD. The final list of stakeholders will be approved by the ILO Technical Advisor.
• Deliver a demand side technical workshop 1 to further define the implementation mechanism from the NOS for priority occupations (in person). The purpose of this workshop is ensure an employer led approach to potential interventions and help define what specifically their role could be in supporting the education and training sector. It is possible that interventions may include areas such as apprenticeships, this workshop will help define what this means for employers in KSA. The workshop may focus specifically on the priority NOS or more generally, as defined by the status of the Deputyship work at the time of the workshop.
• Deliver a supply side technical workshop 2 - Using the NOS for priority jobs to inform the design of qualifications/ credential solutions for the sectors, based on the 3 NOS (in person). The purpose of this workshop is to engage the TVET, higher education and industry profession bodies in the development of sector specific solutions based on the needs of employers. The findings of the Skills Anticipation and the employer workshops will be used to facilitate a more specific discussion about possible responses to the priority occupations that consider the whole eco system in their development. The workshop focus may change to respond to the status of the Deputyship work at the time of the workshop.
• Engage with relevant national stakeholders and their documentation, such as the NQF and ETEC documents to identify alignment and gaps. This work will require the Consultant to use existing documents and systems to highlight their application for this purpose.

Recommendations

• Write the Workshop Report summarizing the findings for how the demand and supply sides of the system and collaborate to implement the proposed interventions
• Write the policy implications and recommendations for the stakeholders in the skills systems. This may involve some addition consultations to ensure policy recommendations are well aligned.

Key Deliverables

1. Stakeholder consultation notes into a summary report with a minimum of 8 consultations/meetings
2. Workshop materials and workshop report based on outcomes of the workshop and recommendations for further actions
3. Policy white paper on the alignment of TVET and education in KSA to support employer’s needs – anticipated length 5-10 pages including appropriate referencing.

Duration of the assignment and draft workplan (please refer to the attached ToR)

Payment Schedule (please refer to the attached ToR)

Timelines

 The work is anticipated to take a total of 25 days over 2 months between May 2025 and June 2025.

ILO’s responsibilities

*The ILO shall cover the cost of one round ticket to Riyadh and Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) during the mission as per ILO rules and regulations[1]. The DSA will cover accommodation, local travel, and other per diem costs and will not exceed the amount listed in ILO regulations. Dates listed for the missions are tentative pending final discussion and agreement with Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development. The commitment of the ILO for the ticket cost shall not exceed the amount costed by the ILO authorized travel agent upon finalization of the travel dates during the inception period. If the actual travel cost differs from that foreseen in the contract, the contracting ILO department will amend accordingly the amount to be paid based on actual costs and against invoice.