SEAMEO VOCTECH Forum tackles sustainability and Institutional Readiness

Southeast Asia. SEAMEO VOCTECH  (03 June 2026) - The SEAMEO VOCTECH Regional Centre successfully organised the Forum on Greening TVET and Institutional Readiness in Southeast Asia: Policy, Practice and Monitoring Approaches, convening policymakers, educators, researchers, development partners, and industry stakeholders from across the region and beyond in a hybrid format. 

The event was organised in conjunction with the Hybrid Regional Training Programme on Design Thinking-Based Mixed-Methods Research for Implementing the Greening Education Readiness Index (GERI) in TVET, reflecting the growing commitment of ASEAN Member States to advancing sustainable development through education and skills development. The forum is also aligned with SEAMEO VOCTECH’s 7th Five-Year Development Plan, which is guided by the theme “Inclusive TVET for a Green and Digital Future”, underscoring the Centre’s commitment to promoting sustainable, inclusive, and technology-driven approaches to TVET across the region. 

Image 1: Photo Compilation of Group Photo and Forum Sessions

Serving as a platform for sharing regional and national initiatives on greening TVET and education, the forum facilitated discussions on monitoring and institutional readiness approaches for sustainability, while promoting collaboration among policymakers, institutions, researchers, and development partners. The session featured distinguished speakers and experts in green education and sustainable development, including H.E. Mr Weert Börner, Ambassador-Designate of the Federal Republic of Germany to Brunei Darussalam; Dr Margarita Pavlova, Senior Research Fellow at SEAMEO VOCTECH; Ms Nurul Fathiah Bazilah binti Haji Ibrahim, Education Officer at the STEP Centre; Mr Hiromichi Takayama, Programme Specialist at UNESCO Jakarta; and Ms Kenneth Barrientos, Head of the UNESCO-UNEVOC Network Secretariat. 

The forum brought together over 100 participants, including representatives from ministries of education, SEAMEO Centres, TVET agencies, higher education and TVET institutions, researchers, development partners, sustainability stakeholders, and participants of the Hybrid Regional GERI Training Programme. 

Through this forum, SEAMEO VOCTECH reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the region and beyond, integrating sustainability principles into TVET systems and strengthening institutional capacity to respond to the demands of a greener economy. The discussions and knowledge sharing are expected to contribute to the ongoing development and implementation of the GERI Framework, supporting evidence-based policies and practices for sustainable TVET transformation across Southeast Asia. 

This article is for educational purposes only. All credit and rights of this report remain with the original copyright holders such as owners, authors, and publishers of the material. More information on this can be found on our Additional Disclaimers page.