The Middle East is to benefit from OPITO’s First Common Global Qualifications for Oil & Gas to build competent workforces.
For the first time, workers anywhere in the world will be able to work towards vocational qualifications which will be recognised by the global oil and gas industry.
Training standards body, OPITO International, has developed global technical standards and a qualifications framework which will help meet current and future skills demands in oil and gas.
It has also been implemented to improve competence in the operations and maintenance activities associated with the extraction of hydrocarbons.
Group chief executive of OPITO, David Doig, said: “In the last 18 months governments, international oil companies, national oil companies and contractors have turned to OPITO for a solution to delivering skilled and competent workers with the technical competence required to exploit the world’s remaining oil and gas reserves.
“Our response has been to deliver a flexible framework with industry-designed and industry-recognised qualifications that can be measured against industry standards.
“Our quality assurance then makes sure that the training, anywhere in the world, is delivered in the correct way, by the right people, using the right equipment in a safe and well-managed environment.”
As part of the framework, a newly created Oil and Gas Foundation Level will provide training that acts as a gateway into the industry for individuals who don’t have the basic skills normally associated with entry to a vocational skills development programme.
According to OPITO, the international oil and gas industry faces a significant challenge in building a safe and sustainable workforce with the right skills as it seeks to prolong the life of existing fields, develop new fields and operate them safely and efficiently.
Doig added: “In many oil and gas provinces, governments and industry are grappling with building indigenous workforces, making sure they provide employment for local people.
“They have turned to OPITO to design appropriate, industry-specific, valued, nationally and globally recognised training outcomes that will result in a safe and competent workforce.
