Skills matter, whether it's sports or the workforce

NOTHING says more, perhaps, about the value of superstar skills than the news last week about footballer Neymar's record transfer fee of 222 million euros (S$335 million).

With his move from FC Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) - a deal celebrated in the French capital with an Eiffel Tower light-up - the 25-year-old Brazilian player will reportedly be making just over US$1 million a week. Eyeball-popping wages by any measure, in any sector, but Qatari-owned PSG sees him as being key to its success and believes his extraordinary soccer skills and capabilities will help take the club to Champions League glory.

Skills matter, in the rarefied world of celebrity sports, music or movie stars, but also - perhaps even more so - at the rather more earthly levels across the workforce at large. It's a message that has increasingly been drummed home in Singapore, where a national movement is underway to encourage people to continue learning and relearning after school, pick up new skills, pursue their talents and passion, and develop to their full potential.