Digital passport to track Bahraini skills

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

A proposal to give every Bahraini a digital ‘skills passport’ that can be used to match them with jobs, show what skills they still need and guide them towards training has been lodged in Parliament as part of efforts to raise Bahrainisation.

MP Dr Munir Seroor proposes giving citizens a single digital file covering their skills, qualifications and work history, while giving the government a clearer picture of Bahrainis ready for different fields of work.

The Bahraini Skills Passport would follow each citizen through school, training and working life. It would record academic qualifications, professional certificates, work experience, recognised courses, technical and digital skills, professional licences and work-related achievements.

In practice, the file would allow a citizen’s record to be checked against the demands of a job or trade, showing where their skills match and where further training is needed.

The scheme would also include a Professional Readiness Index to measure how closely a person’s qualifications, skills and experience meet the needs of jobs sought by the labour market.

Where gaps are found, the system would show what is missing and point people towards courses or training aimed at filling them.

‘A citizen needs to know how ready they actually are for a job, not merely hold a certificate,’ Dr Seroor said.

He argues that the same data would give the government a clearer picture before drawing up Bahrainisation and job replacement plans.

Rather than counting qualifications alone, the proposed system would show how many Bahrainis have the skills needed for a given occupation and where shortages remain.

Training schemes would also be judged by what happens after people complete them, including how well they lead into jobs.

Dr Seroor said Bahrain also needs a database of skills likely to be sought in years to come, rather than one centred mainly on academic certificates.

The proposal comes as artificial intelligence, digital technology and the knowledge economy change the kind of work on offer and the skills firms seek.