1. The FPCAT Agency, which you chair, was created more than two years ago. What are its objectives? What difficulties are you encountering?
Yes, Law 10/2015, on vocational training and qualification, created it, but it was not implemented until 2021. Its main objective is to direct and coordinate the FPCAT System. It also manages its own services, such as the accreditation of professional competencies and the prospecting/forecasting of training needs. It is attached to the Department of the Presidency and leads public policies for vocational training and qualification. It coordinates the different competent units of the Government of Catalonia that are in different departments: Education, Business and Labour, Climate Action… It also coordinates the System’s Network, especially in promoting integrated vocational training centres. A very relevant issue is to establish general criteria for key topics: training needs and planning, guidance, distance learning, dual training, and evaluation of the System itself. It also manages the Catalogue of Professional Qualifications (which is the basis of everything, as it is used to create curricula, professional profiles, accreditation, etc.). The Agency is the heart of the System. A young heart that is already beating very fast.
2. What is the state of vocational training in Catalonia?
In permanent evolution. In reality, we are at a disruptive moment. Data indicates growth in places, with increasing demand from people interested in lifelong learning. Employment rates are also very high in a good part of the studies. Administrations are firmly committed to strengthening all strategies that contribute to enhancing citizens’ educational and professional trajectories. Companies are increasingly participating in the dual modality. The Government of Catalonia is now working on the 2035 centre map. We have just approved the decree for integrated vocational training centres.
3. This year, you published the FPCAT System’s Professional Guidance Protocol Model and the Basis Document for the Catalan Model of Professional Training and Qualification Needs Prospecting. What do these documents consist of and what is their usefulness?
The first thing to highlight is that these documents are approved based on permanent social dialogue. They have their starting and ending point in the System’s Steering Committee, where the most representative trade unions and business organizations in Catalonia participate. We agree down to the last comma. The Guidance Protocol Model will help us provide all information and guidance points with a common support methodology. And to do so with a single message. We need to inform, guide, and support citizens where it is truly needed. And for that, prospecting and foresight are essential. Guidance must be based on evidence and data.
4. This year, you also established the FPCAT System’s Sectoral Councils, of which Autoocupació is a part. What are the Agency’s expectations regarding the participation of the Sectoral Councils?
First, we thank you for your participation and commitment. The sectoral councils were the last instrument remaining to be deployed from Law 10/2015, on vocational training and qualification. The sectoral councils contribute to detecting training needs, updating qualifications and professional profiles, and monitoring dual training and competency accreditation. There are 400 stakeholders from different productive sectors. The FPCAT Agency trusts that their contribution will be key to improving vocational training. The first challenge is for the General Foresight Report 23-26 to be a decisive instrument in planning for the next four years. It will forever change how resources, which are finite, are prioritized and distributed.
5. How does the FPCAT Agency plan to address guidance for entrepreneurship and training in entrepreneurial competencies?
Throughout their lives, people go through different moments that are often conditioned by personal, social, or economic changes and require continuous adaptation to their environment. In this sense, professional guidance must be carried out continuously over time, taking into account, on the one hand, the person’s abilities, interests, preferences, aspirations, motivations, and life stage, and on the other hand, the evolution of the labour market and the competencies demanded by the business fabric.
If the person wishes to develop a self-employment business project, an analysis of the chosen sector’s situation and potential must first be carried out to determine the business’s viability. In this regard, it is advisable to provide the person with information about the entities they can contact to receive advice and support throughout the process of creating their company, and especially in preparing a business plan. The business plan is the main tool that can help the person decide if their project is solid enough to create a company, or if any aspect (commercial, productive, organizational, or financial) needs to be redirected.
We must bear in mind that many companies are driven by people who have gone through the FPCAT System.
6. Autoocupació’s motto is “I am what I want to be.” Are you?
Fortunately, it’s a YES. Thanks to what I learned at home and through scouting and associations, I have almost always been interested in public affairs. I have been able to conceive and lead social initiatives such as Reforma Horària (Time Reform), I have the honour of having represented citizens in Parliament as a deputy, and I currently have the good fortune to be the head of public policies for vocational training and qualification, which are at their best moment in three decades. Now, a reflection beforehand: I never would have imagined being the protagonist of all these responsibilities. I’m not undermining the guidance system, but a professional career starts with specific training, which indeed conditions it. But then life is full of coincidences and lucky breaks.
