Hanoi (VNA) – About 600 small- and mediumenterprises (SMEs) will be supported to apply an occupational health andhygiene management system as part of a programme on vocational education,employment and workplace safety.

The national target programme on vocational education,employment and workplace safety for the 2016-2020 period has been recentlyapproved by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc with an investment of more than 14trillion VND (617 million USD).

It includes three projects – Innovating and improvingvocational education quality; Developing labour and employment markets; and Enhancingworkplace safety and hygiene.

The overall objectives of the programme are to assist thedevelopment of vocational education; foster the growth of the labour market;improve effectiveness in connecting workforce supply and demand; and createjobs and promote manpower export and workplace safety and hygiene,

It will also enhance sustainable employment and increaseproductivity by improving working conditions and wages and preventingwork-related accidents.

The programme targets to provide facilities and equipmentfor about 30 special schools qualified for offering maritime professionaltraining and training for ethnic minority people or people with disabilities.Training for around 100 key professionals will be developed according to adecision issued by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

About 8,800 labourers will be provided courses inlanguages and vocational skills with an aim of sending 6,200 of them abroad ascontract guest workers.

The programme will also offer consultations on employmentpolicies and vocational education for visitors to career service centres acrossthe country.-VNA