Green skills’ training in Singapore burgeons in popularity

THE demand for green skills is set to keep growing as efforts to transition to more sustainable economic models intensify.

In Singapore, the plethora of training and upskilling options is only going to expand, observers said, as the market works to bridge the gap between existing skill sets and intensifying needs.

“There has been a steady growth in demand for green skills by hirers in Singapore,” SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) told The Business Times, “as companies seek to equip themselves with the know-how to adjust to rising stakeholder demands from regulators, investors and customers to adopt more sustainable practices”.

“Some of the most in-demand skills for the green economy include Sustainable Investment Management and Green Facilities Management’,” added SSG, the statutory board that drives and coordinates the implementation of the nation’s SkillsFuture movement.

Demand for skills in Green Facilities Management grew by a whopping 2,300 per cent per year from 2018 to 2021, according to SSG’s Skills Demand for the Future Economy report 2022. Demand is measured by the number of job postings that mention a given skill.

Demand for skills in Carbon Markets & Decarbonisation Strategies Management grew 1,700 per cent per year, while those for Sustainable Investment Management increased 1,550 per cent per year, over the same period; these, albeit started at relatively low bases.

It is anticipated that more financial and corporate professionals will require these skills to lead organisation strategy and policy changes in response to carbon policy, market development, and investment and decarbonisation strategies, the report added.

In-demand courses

Working to meet that rising demand is an expansion in the scope and number of training courses now available.

Echoing the trends observed by SSG, professional services firms PwC and Deloitte said they have seen a particular increase in interest in courses they offer that deal with sustainable finance and carbon management.

Online course provider Coursera told BT that the number of environmental, social and governance (ESG)- related courses it offers has grown 130 per cent in the last four years. It now has over 200 courses in this area, compared to 85 in 2018.

Its enrolment numbers have also soared – from over 206,000 enrolments in ESG-related courses in 2018, to over 509,000 enrolments globally in 2022, which represents an increase of almost 150 per cent.

“In Singapore, the government has identified the need to develop green skills for various sectors of the economy and has prioritised training in areas such as green process design, environmental management system framework, and sustainability management. This demonstrates a clear need for individuals to upskill and gain knowledge in ESG-related areas to meet the demand of the future economy,” said Coursera’s managing director for Asia-Pacific Raghav Gupta.

Asia Sustainable Finance Initiative (ASFI) Academy, an e-learning platform for financial professionals that was launched in 2021, has also seen growing demand for its courses, which are developed by WWF-Singapore and its ASFI Partners.

Having started with two key courses, this has grown to a total of 13 courses. Seven of these are “core” courses that are accredited by the Institute of Banking and Finance. Another two to four courses are set to be rolled out by year-end.

“Our introductory level courses, Fundamentals of Responsible Banking and Responsible Investment 101 are the most popular, giving digestible but comprehensive introductions to responsible banking and investing, respectively,” said the academy’s project manager Kate Ansbro Laya.

Enterprise Singapore, which champions enterprise development, has observed similar interest.

“Most Singapore enterprises are keen to start from the basics of sustainability and understand its relevance and application for their businesses,” said Geoffrey Yeo, its assistant chief executive officer (Urban Solutions, Sustainability & Enterprise Finance).

“As enterprises … deepen their sustainability efforts, more may also be interested in learning about specific sustainability areas, such as circularity and green supply chain/procurement,” he added.

SSG said Institutes of Higher Learning in Singapore now offer over 250 green-related courses in transferable green skills such as carbon footprint management that are applicable across multiple sectors. There are also courses that provide specialised skills training for specific areas such as sustainable built environment and green finance.

The National University of Singapore said that demand for both its open-enrolment and customised programmes for corporates have been on the uptrend, with its more business-oriented ESG courses on leadership, strategy, investing and ethics, that are funded by SSG, seeing good traction.

Nanyang Technological University is looking to develop longer credit-bearing programmes, in response to feedback from its course participants who have asked for more in-depth coverage on certain topics.

The Singapore Management University plans to add a generalist track for sustainability leadership, and have industry-specific modules to address Singapore’s national needs for ESG expertise in the areas of transportation, electronics, manufacturing and tourism.

The Singapore Business Federation has also launched various initiatives, in response to such demand and interest – including career conversion and job development partner programmes – in addition to conducting ESG courses on sustainable finance and carbon management, among others.

Choosing the right course

The plethora of course offerings, however, can make it difficult for individuals and businesses alike to identify the ones that best suit them.

Some course participants have also told BT that they felt the courses they attended failed to meet their expectations. For example, one said the course she attended was too basic, despite its lengthy duration.

Yeo said: “Some companies have shared that they are unsure which ESG area and course is relevant for them, given the broad scope of sustainability and the complex landscape of frameworks and standards.”

Samir Bedi, Asean Workforce Advisory leader at EY, said the market today has an uneven understanding and appreciation of ESG, with companies at different states of maturity in this journey.

“We are seeing various ESG training or education programmes that attempt to cater to a broad range of needs. While they have their place in the market, these programmes are likely not fit-for-purpose, especially for companies that seek to align their corporate ESG goals and strategies with the training courses. ESG programmes will need customisation that is specific to the sector that organisation operates in,” he said.

Cherine Fok, a partner in the ESG team at KPMG in Singapore, said some areas to consider when assessing if the content is relevant is to see if it provides insights on a recent trend or development in the sector, whether it plugs a critical knowledge or skills gap, or how it can value-add to the current job role.

“Businesses have been prioritising professional development in decarbonisation strategies and implementation as a primary focus,” she said.

“However, they should move towards gaining complementary science, engineering and business knowledge and skills that can aid advancement of ESG developments and innovations as well as culture building in sustainability within their organisations. These are all important capabilities that can impact an organisation’s green transition efforts.”