Having an adequately trained workforce is critical to developing productive, competitive societies. But the current mismatch between the skills that are taught in schools and those the private sector demands is limiting the region’s economic potential. Countries in the region are investing to ensure education and vocational training systems can better respond to and anticipate labor market needs, but to be truly effective, businesses must take an active role in shaping these efforts.

The Inter-American Dialogue is pleased to host a panel discussion on lessons in workforce development from the Americas, with a particular focus on the role of the private sector. Bringing together the perspectives of the United States and Brazil—the country with the largest vocational training entity in Latin America (SENAI) — the panelists will discuss how public-private partnerships can foster better-quality education and training systems. 

Follow this event on Twitter at #WorkforceDialogue and @The_Dialogue.

Speakers:

Frederico Lamego

Executive Manager for International Relations, National Service for Industrial Training (SENAI), Brazil 

Marcio Guerra

Executive Manager for Forecast and Perspective Studies, National Confederation of Industry (CNI), Brazil

Eric Seleznow

Senior Advisor, Jobs for the Future (@jfftweets)

Brent Parton

Deputy Director of the Center on Education and Skills, New America (@btparton)

Commentator

Ariel Fiszbein

Education Program Director, Inter-American Dialogue (@arielfiszbein)