Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa: Vocational Training is the engine of Basque employment and economic growth
Vocational Education and Training (VET) is critical to "solid progress for the Basque Country", with a large part of future employment opportunities linked directly to VET qualifications.
Basque Cabinet Secretary for Education, Begoña Pedrosa, chaired the Empresa y FP (Business and VET) event today, joined by a delegation from Confebask led by its president, Tamara Yagüe. The ceremony, hosted at the Euskalduna Conference Centre in Bilbao, saw the presentation of diplomas to students completing Dual VET and work-based learning programmes. The event also recognised the vital contributions of outstanding instructors and companies in supporting student development.
Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa highlighted the strategic alliance between education and business "as a pillar of the country", underscoring the relationship between the education system and the wider economy. Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa stated: "When a company welcomes students, shares what it knows, and devotes time to training, it is making a commitment to the country. This collaboration directly strengthens the Basque Country.”
Driving progress and competitiveness
Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa addressed global changes, such as industrial transformation, digitalisation, and the ecological transition, noting that Basque VET is adapting to respond to the real needs of the business community. In this context, she described VET as the decisive factor in guaranteeing progress and competitiveness, "ensuring the Basque Country makes solid progress". She announced estimates suggesting that in the coming years, more than 660,000 job opportunities will be generated in the Basque Country, "and a large part of these will be linked to VET qualifications".
Praising the graduates, Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa remarked that "the future of the country needs the talent, energy, and ambition of this generation". Highlighting the agility of the system, she added: "We have a VET system that is close to reality, that engages with companies, innovates, and shares knowledge. It is a VET system that is open to the environment and works in a network.”
Evolving to offer opportunity and equity
The new Vocational Training Law establishes a framework for opening up training pathways, reinforcing personalisation and flexibility, and strengthening links with the industrial base. Under this framework, all VET provision is now dual and linked to strategic sectors. Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa emphasised that the work of schools and teachers has been essential to achieving this. "Teachers are being trained in new technologies, adapting methodologies, and accompanying an increasingly diverse student body," she noted.
Looking ahead to the upcoming Basque Country VET Strategy 2030, Cabinet Secretary Pedrosa concluded: "We are building a VET system that generates talent for this new Basque Country, offers flexible paths, enables lifelong learning, and keeps the entrepreneurial culture alive.” The strategy will position VET centrally within the energy transition, digital transformation, and the demographic challenge, while expanding VET provision in Basque and other languages.
