Adult educators will have to continually upgrade and clock practice hours in order to remain registered as educators for SkillsFuture-supported courses, said Minister for Education Desmond Lee on July 7.

Speaking at the SkillsFuture Festival Opening Forum on Monday, Lee announced a new professional pathway for adult educators which will be implemented progressively by April next year.

This new Training and Adult Educator Professional Pathway (TAEPP) will require adult educators to undergo continual training to maintain their registration on a new national registry for SkillsFuture educators.

This will "raise the quality" of the sector, said Lee.

From April 1, 2026, adult educators who wish to deliver SkillsFuture-supported training will be required to be on this new registry.

To maintain their status, adult educators will have to complete at least 40 Continuing Professional Development hours and 80 practice hours every two years.

The application process for this registry will begin in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Adult educators are currently required to complete a certification programme developed and delivered by the Institute for Adult Learning (IAL).

"As technology and approaches to adult learning evolve, our adult educators themselves must keep upgrading to keep up with industry developments and new training methods," said Lee.

"The one-off certification programme we have today will not be enough."

TAEPP will also allow more expert practitioners in selected professional sectors to become recognised and certified as adult educators, Lee continued, adding that SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) will work with leaders in the legal and healthcare sectors to identify and nominate expert practitioners.

'We need more employers to come on board'

Lee also addressed the importance of encouraging companies to send their employees for further training.

Increased productivity, better employee satisfaction and talent retention, and even higher revenue were some of the benefits seen by enterprises that partnered with SkillsFuture, he said.

Lee continued that while it is understandable and natural for some employers to worry about employees leaving for other companies after upskilling with the former's support, it is important to remember that everyone will be worse off if Singapore does not build up its human capital and resilience as a nation.

"We need more of our employers to come on board, so we can turn this into a national movement that extends across our entire workforce and creates what I call a 'skills-first' ecosystem," Lee added.

He also said that individuals need to take charge of their own career health and skills development

"As a Government, we are committed to continue investing in Singaporeans so that you can thrive amidst fast-paced change," Lee said.

He added that the Lifelong Learning Institute will be enhanced with a new advisory centre in Paya Lebar to offer enhanced career guidance for individuals, up-to-date jobs-skills insights, and opportunities for industry exposure.

It has also been renamed to Lifelong Learning Singapore (LLSG) as of July 1, according to SSG.

LLSG will also organise more sectoral workshops, delivered in partnership with employers and industry, to provide industry insights, said Lee.

"I encourage everyone to actively tap on these opportunities, and tap on the support, provided to equip ourselves to stay agile and relevant," Lee said.

UOB appointed SkillsFuture Queen Bee 

The SkillsFuture Forum, which kicks off the 2025 SkillsFuture Festival, was held at Raffles City Convention Centre and saw the appointment of UOB as the newest SkillsFuture Queen Bee.

Queen Bees refer to enterprises that are leaders in their fields and work with SSG to provide training as well as advisory to companies.

In response to the appointment, country head of Business Banking Singapore at UOB Paul Kan said: "This partnership with SSG reinforces our commitment to driving growth with SMEs through programmes that help them develop new capabilities and deeper resilience."

During the forum, two Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) were signed between SSG and UOB, as well as UOB and the Nanyang Technological University, the National University of Singapore and Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

A panel discussion amongst representatives from SSG, Boston Consulting Group, Grab and optics and biomedical manufacturer Cragar Industries concluded the event.

Also present at the forum was Dr Janil Puthucheary, Senior Minister of State for Education.

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bhavya.rawat@asiaone.com