23 September 2015

Vladimir Putin has signed a list of instructions aimed at support and development of the WorldSkills movement in Russia. According to the document, JuniorSkills competition tailored for children aged 10-17, must become a part of WorldSkills.

The instructions followed after the president’s meeting with the members of the national team WorldSkills Russia in Sochi on September 1.

Among the instructions is also the creation of the organizing committee for WorldSkills Competition 2019 that will take place in Kazan, outlining a plan of the main events at the WorldSkills 2019 and establishment of an exhibition center in Kazan to host the championship. The document also contains an order to the Russian Ministry of Education and Science as well as to the Agency of strategic initiatives to “provide children and teenagers aged 10-17 with an opportunity to participate in the JuniorSkills events carried out at WorldSkills standards.”

The JuniorSkills program, that is aimed at providing school students with early professional career guidance and basic career education, was launched by Volnoe Delo Oleg Deripaska Foundation in 2014 in cooperation with the Agency for strategic initiatives and WorldSkills Russia with the support of Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade as well as the Ministry of Education and Science. JuniorSkills objective is to create new opportunities for career guidance and professional training for students.

The first Russian professional skills championship among school children JuniorSkills was held in Yekaterinburg on October 30-November 2, 2014 as part of the nationwide championship on cross-industry blue-collar professions in hi-tech WorldSkills. A total of 53 teams of 110 participants aged 10-17 and 64 experts from eight Russian regions took part in the competition.

Russia’s president Vladimir Putin marked juniors’ success in his annual address to Federal Assembly. JuniorSkilles joined the WorldSkills Russia movement in November 2014. According to the Government decree of March 5, 2015, junior competitions are included in the list of the events aimed at popularization of blue-collar professions. Volnoe Delo Foundation and the Agency WorldSkills Russia signed an agreement on strategic partnership for JuniorSkills program in March 2015.

The first national championship JuniorSkills as a part of Nationwide championship on blue-collar professions WorldSkills Russia took place in Kazan on May 19-23, 2015. Over 100 schoolchildren aged 10-17 participated in the competition as well as 54 experts from 16 Russian regions. Juniors competed in 11 professional skills.

The second National championship WorldSkills Hi-Tech will be held in Yekaterinburg on October 30-November 3 where 100 juniors will compete in 10 hi-tech professional skills. A distinctive feature of this championship is that each junior team will be coached by corporations participating in it.

JuniorSkills is a part of Volnoe Delo Oleg Deripaska Foundation’s set of projects in the sphere of professional training for Russian industry which include Computers for pupils, New Generation School. School of Engineering Culture, “Robotics: Engeneering Cadres of Innovative Russia, Next Generation Blue-Collar Workers, Japanese Kaizen center.