“Why aren’t Kosovars prepared for the future workforce?”

This week’s excerpt from the annual report sheds light on the various challenges preventing “tech-centric” educational reform. A major issue preventing progress is minimal cross-sectoral collaboration, which has affected workforce development in the young country. This reality has prompted groups like Cyber Academy to get involved, providing youth with the education that they deserve.

For states like Kosovo, preparing their workforce for the challenges of the digital age is borne out of economic necessity. Policymakers, regardless of their ideological leanings, believe that a “tech-centric” education will allow the state to secure its niche within the competitive global marketplace. However, without pinpointing which skills will allow their citizens to advance in their careers, experts believe that the economic productivity of their young population will be negatively affected (American Chamber of Commerce in Kosovo 2020). Ignoring the frequent calls for curricular reform stunts the educational development of Kosovar students, leaving future graduates ill-equipped to handle workplace realities. To address this shortcoming, educational initiatives primarily led by actors in the private sector have been created, sponsoring training that address the perceived deficiencies of pedagogical instruction at the university level (Zogaj Gashi et al. 2020). Despite these isolated efforts, foreign benefactors remain the largest supporter of skill-building programs, raising concerns that the domestic market will be unable to produce qualified professionals with specialized skill sets. Looking to the future, greater collaboration will be needed between government actors and corporate interests to prepare for future economic shocks, as the current misalignment in strategic priorities between these influential groups undermines workforce adaptiveness (Serhati 2017).

You can read more at the following link: Cyber Security Annual Report