Expatriates in Shanghai are looking forward to the 46th WorldSkills Competition.
It's only 200 days left before the event, featuring competitors from all over the world, kicks off.
The expats from countries such as the UK, Japan, India, Germany and Laos come from all walks of life, including a landscape architect, bar and restaurant owners, musicians, a barista and a future railway engineer.
They said they are looking forward to seeing all the participants in Shanghai and wish them success in the competition.
The 46th WorldSkills Competition, or WorldSkills Shanghai 2022, will take place in Shanghai on October 12-17. It will be the first time for the Chinese mainland to host the event that is the largest in the world and believed to reflect the most advanced development of skills.
A series of activities will be held during the competition, including the WorldSkills Conference and WorldSkills Expo.
The WorldSkills Museum, the first of its kind in the world, will officially open to the public as a permanent legacy of WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 to tell the unique story of WorldSkills International and the efforts it has made with its members to change the lives of people and societies around the world.

Activities were launched around China on Saturday to mark the 200-day countdown to the 46th WorldSkills Competition that will take place from October 12 to 17 inShanghai.
Former WorldSkills medalists, including Yang Jinlong, champion of the Auto Painting project at the 43th competition; Song Biao, winner of Industrial Mechanic Millwright at the 44th event; and Hu Ping, winner of Fashion Technology at the 44th competition, are now giving time at 7:20am, 11am and 7pm on China National Radio's Voice of China channel.
Their voices will be heard regularly till the day before the WorldSkills Competition kicks off.
At the WeChat account of the 46th WorldSkills Competition, visitors can see a brief introduction of the event and complete a questionnaire to get a prediction on potential in the skills world.
They can also join in a lucky draw to get one of the 200,000 sets of gifts offered by event organizers to celebrate thecountdown.

Former WorldSkills medalists and representatives of the WorldSkills Champions Trust also extended their greetings to skilled young people from all over the world to participate in the event in Shanghai in October by saying "You can do it."
Various videos were released featuring best wishes for the 46th WorldSkills Competition from former skills competition medalists and people from all walks of life, as well as their welcoming messages to competitors.
A video produced by Shanghai Daily features messages from nine expats in Shanghai. They are from countries such as the UK, Japan, India, Germany and Laos and said they are looking forward to seeing all the participants in Shanghai and wish them success in the competition.
The video is also being played in the China Pavilion at the ongoing World Expo in Dubai.
The 46th WorldSkills Competition, or WorldSkills Shanghai 2022, will be the first time for the Chinese mainland to host the event that is the largest in the world and believed to reflect the most advanced development of skills.
A series of activities will be held during the competition, including the WorldSkills Conference and WorldSkills Expo.
The WorldSkills Museum, the first of its kind in the world, will officially open to the public as a permanent legacy of WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 to tell the unique story of WorldSkills International and the efforts it has made with its members to change the lives of people and societies around the world.

With the 46th WorldSkills Competition less than eight months away, an online Competition Preparation Week (CPW) kicked off on Tuesday.

The weeklong event is one of the key milestones in the organization of a WorldSkills Competitions, which usually take place eight to nine months prior to the competition.

It features a series of meetings to discuss and decide on detailed plans for the skill competitions, including facilities and technical standards, so that organizers and participants can prepare for the event accordingly.

Hu Chunhua, Chinese vice premier and chief of the lead group for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022, said at the opening ceremony for CPW that the Chinese government has attached great importance to preparations for the competition, and President Xi Jinping has made it clear that efforts should be made to hold an innovative WorldSkills Competition with extensive influence.

"Since China won the bid to host the event, we have been closely communicating with WorldSkills International and its Members to make preparations, and we are confident we will fulfill our promise to deliver a creative and influential skills gala to the world," Hu said.

Hu said the WorldSkills Competition is the largest and highest-level vocational competition in the world and reflects the advanced level of vocational skills development, as well as a platform for skilled people from all over the world to show off their skills and enhance friendship.

"China will spare no effort to support Competition Preparation Week so WorldSkills International, Members and other stakeholders can have sufficient exchanges and communication," he said. "We also welcome feedback about the preparations for WorldSkills Competition 2022, which will help us lay a solid foundation for its success."

Minister of Human Resources and Social Security Zhang Jinan said the 46th WorldSkills Competition will draw on the experience of the Beijing Winter Olympics to make a thorough plan and overcome all challenges to ensure a good experience for all participants under appropriatepandemic prevention and control measures.

He also said that China will adhere to the "economical, safe and green" concept to organize the competition, trying its best to improve the organization and operational efficiency of the event, implement environmental requirements, and create a healthy and safe environment for participants.

"We are ready to work with WorldSkills International and its Members to give full play to the leading role of the WorldSkills Competition to make positive contributions to the cultivation of global skills development," said Zhang.

Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng said the city government has been working closely with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, WorldSkills International and other stakeholders to come up with effective preparations against the influence of the pandemic, and hold a competition highlighting the charm and strength of innovation, technology and skills.

"We will adhere to a people-centric principle to continue improving our anti-pandemic measures and make every effort to build solid barriers to ensure safety," he said. "With utmost care, we will create a first-class environment for participants and work closely with all stakeholders to improve our service plans and stage a safe and successful WorldSkills Competition."

Chris Humphries, WorldSkills International president and chair of the board, thanked China, Shanghai, WorldSkills China and the WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 Executive Bureau for their efforts preparing for the 46th WorldSkills Competition.

He said China has made great progress creating closed loop management policies.

Humphries lauded joint efforts for promoting skills development and the role of skills in creating a sustainable, equitable, diverse and inclusive world.

This year, preparatory week activities will bring together over 300 key stakeholders, including skill management teams, Members, Global Partners, Competition Organizers and WorldSkills International, to plan for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022.

The Competition, the first of its kind to be held on the Chinese mainland, will take place in Shanghai 12-17 October with 63 skill competitions.

In the following days, a series of videoconference meetings will be held to finalize the infrastructure list, workshop layouts, logistics, equipment and tools, health, safety and environmental requirements.

Along with the weeklong discussions, the task of coordinating 63 individual skill competitions is so complex that meetings for each skill began on January 20 and will continue until March 11.

The lead group for the 46th WorldSkills Competition recently held its first plenary meeting in Beijing. Meeting participants listened to a report about event preparations and discussed subsequent work plans.

The group stressed the importance of organizing an innovative WorldSkills Competition with extensive influence.

3M has supplied 560,000 KN95 facial masks and 2,000 packages of personal protective equipment (PPE) for the 46th WorldSkills Competition, which will take place in Shanghai in October 2022.

The WorldSkills Competition is known as the world’s largest skills competition and will be hosted on the Chinese mainland for the first time. With challenges brought by the pandemic affecting the whole world, Shanghai has worked out comprehensive plans for security and pandemic prevention and control. 

As a Gold Partner for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 and a Global Partner for WorldSkills International, 3M donated the materials to the WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 Executive Bureau at a recent ceremony.

"As a Gold Partner for the event, 3M is honored to protect participants from all over the world, with the power of technology, to shine on this important platform of WorldSkills Competition with their outstanding skills," said Yin Xiaomin, General Manager of 3M China's personal protective equipment department.

For over a decade, 3M has provided personal protective equipment to WorldSkills Competitions

When Olympic champions at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games hold high their customary bouquets on the medal stand, no one will be prouder than Shanghai granny Li Meili.
Li, inheritor of a traditional Shanghai wool-knitting technique, still can remember the exciting moment in October 2021, when she learned the wool bouquet was chosen as the final plan for the award ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games.
"At that time, I felt my dream was realized. Our design scheme had been reviewed by the organizing committee for more than four months. I once thought it was hopeless," said the 70-year-old Shanghai resident.
Li began to learn the knitting technique in her fifties after retirement. The wool flowers she knitted once served the fourth China International Import Expo (CIIE) and the 10th China Flower Expo, receiving warm welcome from the visitors.
The Olympic bouquet consists of seven different wool flowers including roses, lilies, osmanthus and green olives. According to the organizing committee of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, wool bouquets will never wither and have the characteristic of low-carbon, which reflects the concept of a "green Olympics."
Li is quite familiar with all the kinds of flowers in the bouquet, but she decided to be stricter with herself to meet the Olympic standards. "I chose thin wool. Though the speed of knitting will be slower, but the bouquets will look more exquisite," she said.
A total of 1,251 bouquets are needed for the awards of Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics. Each flower was hand-made, which requires plenty of time and manpower.
"It takes 20 minutes to weave a rose petal. A rose consists of ten petals, three leaves and one stem. A weaver needs to spend at least five hours on one rose," said Li. "Therefore, to complete making a bouquet requires 35 hours. All the bouquets would take nearly 50,000 hours to finish knitting."
Hengyuanxiang Group, a wool manufacturer based in Shanghai and also one of the official sponsors of the Beijing Winter Olympics, recruited knitting groups in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Zhejiang and Jiangsu to join in the project, while Li is responsible for personnel training, quality control and final assembly of the bouquets.
In order to ensure the consistency of the bouquets, each knitting group was only in charge of one or two kinds of flowers, which were sent to Hengyuanxiang Group for assembly after completion.
A perfectionist, Li did not want to produce any waste. "The original bouquet was thinner. I filled the redundant 'branches' into it to make it touch more comfortable," said Li.

WorldSkills Azerbaijan hosted the third stage of a national competition for Cooking in preparation for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 in October.

Twenty Competitors demonstrated their cooking skills by preparing one main course and one salad using ingredients of their choice from a mystery box.

Local and international chefs assessed the Competitors based on the WorldSkills Occupational Standards, such as food hygiene, workstation cleanliness, and preparation of ingredients.

After intense judging, five Competitors were awarded medals. They will now start a preparation programme at the Culinary Arts Center of Azerbaijan accredited by a global leader in skills development, City and Guilds. Professional chefs will train them for the final stage of the selection process, which will determine who will represent Team Azerbaijan at WorldSkills Shanghai 2022.

Over 160 young people from around Azerbaijan applied for the national competition in cooking. Seventy nine passed to the second stage, a 30-question exam on cooking general knowledge.

The WorldSkills Azerbaijan competitions are supported by both public and private sectors and in cooperation with the Azerbaijan State Agency on Vocational Education and Culinary Arts Center of Azerbaijan.

Places on the country's team for the 46th WorldSkills Competition were up for grabs at the country's final national skill competition.

WorldSkills Poland is ready for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 after completing the last of its national skill competitions. The process of selecting the WorldSkills Poland team for the 46th WorldSkills Competition took place at various events throughout 2021.

The last of four national competitions was also the biggest. More than 70 young professionals competed at SkillsPoland in Gdansk on 25 to 26 November 2021. No less than nine places on the team for WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 were up for grabs, including Cabinetmaking, CNC Milling, Electrical Installations, Floristry, Hairdressing, Heavy Vehicle Technology, Hotel Reception, Joinery, and Plumbing and Heating.

Qualification began back in May, with six Competitors vying for the place in Chemical Lab Technician.

It continued in June with 31 young people demonstrating their skills in five competitions devoted to IT — Mechatronics, Cyber Security, Industry 4.0, Mobile Robotics, and Cloud Computing.

Late September saw the turn of Building Information Modelling, with another six Competitors battling it out in Krakow.

Three more competitors, selected in the competition at the end of 2020, will also join the team. They will represent Poland in Cooking, Restaurant Service, and Pâtisserie and Confectionery.

Poland is one of the newer Members of WorldSkills, taking part for the first time at WorldSkills Kazan 2019 and taking home a silver medal in Cooking.
 

Ghana has successfully held its second national skills competition with support from WorldSkills Germany.

Over three days, 73 young people took part in 14 skills with an eye on two major upcoming events — WorldSkills Africa Swakopmund 2022 and WorldSkills Shanghai 2022.

Ghana became the 81st Member of the WorldSkills family two years ago. It is just a year since WorldSkills Germany began providing support to develop vocation training as a cooperation partner.

For Ghana, the event was an important way to develop a highly-skilled workforce, boosting the economy, and reducing the country’s need for international aid.

Those taking part in this year’s national competition qualified through regional competitions. It was held at the Accra Technical Training Centre and organized by the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, the government regulatory agency in charge of TVET under the Ministry of Education, as well as WorldSkills Ghana.

The event was an invitation for stakeholders to come together to exchange views on the theme, "Reimagining TVET as a tool for Ghana beyond aid.”

Opening the Competition, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice President of Ghana described TVET as “a key catalyst to spurring industrialization and decent job creation for the citizens of this country.”

He added: “For sustainable development to occur, there is an urgent need for us to pay significant attention to training highly skilled human resources to serve as key drivers of the economy. A Ghana beyond aid could only be possible when the youth are equipped with competitive global skills and introduced to various skilled careers.”

Hubert Romer, CEO and Official Delegate of WorldSkills Germany, said skills competitions not only raise professional standards but also raise awareness and introduce the potential of a skilled career to a much wider audience. WorldSkills is a global movement, the largest of its kind, where competitors prove again and again that a highly-skilled youth is the future of their nation and our world.”

Looking back at 2021, we have once again witnessed the extraordinary contributions that skilled people have made in an era of instability and disruption.
The Year of Innovation, driven by our Members and supported by our Global Partners, demonstrated new ways of advancing our mission to raise the profile and recognition of skilled people and show how important skills are in achieving economic growth and personal success.
Through initiatives like the WorldSkills Occupational Standards Development Centre, we will further develop a global “gold standard” for skills excellence.
Our work on an Impact Statement reflects both our collective mission and the diverse needs of the 85 countries and regions our Members serve.
We have ensured that Africa remains high on our strategic priorities by working with the African Union, improving national training standards through national competitions, and the forthcoming WorldSkills Africa Swakopmund 2022 in Namibia.
The WorldSkills Capacity Building Centres continued to share expertise with Members, prioritizing supporting developing countries and regions. The WorldSkills Experts Faculty has also been a key resource for Members to train their Experts and a valuable asset for our partners, such as United Nations Industrial Development Agency, to improve training standards in developing countries.
Alongside our Members’ creative and innovative programmes, the hybrid WorldSkills Conference 2021 brought attention to the pressing issues and challenges of the day. A huge thank you to all our Conference Coalition Partners for supporting us in making this important event happen.
BeChangeMaker, our social entrepreneur programme, once again launched social entrepreneurs to new heights as they combined their skilled talents with business experience.
Our WorldSkills Champions Trust representatives demonstrated tremendous poise on the world stage, not only as ambassadors of their skill but also sharing alongside global leaders a youth perspective on issues such as the digital divide, sustainability, and education equity.
Tragically, 2021 will also be remembered for the loss of our dear friend and valued colleague, John Oates, WorldSkills Board member .
John devoted his working life to advancing vocational training and education, especially in his native country of Canada, and we offer both our thanks for his service and our deepest sympathies to his family.
Behind the scenes, WorldSkills International pressed on with the vital work of connecting the national skills organizations of 85 countries and regions.
With the collective efforts of WorldSkills China, the WorldSkills Secretariat, and our Members and Global Partners, the prospect of coming together in Shanghai next October is becoming a reality.
Together, we are working to make sure that the 46th WorldSkills Competition and the opening of the WorldSkills Museum can occur in an atmosphere that will be safe and memorable in October of 2022.
The successes of the past year and opportunities to come are the collective results of many dedicated people from industry, education, NGOs, and government.
We thank all our Global Partners, including Samsung, our WorldSkills Shanghai 2022 Overall Event Presenter, Jiean Hi-tech, our newest Global Partner, and Festo, which celebrated 30 years of partnership with WorldSkills this year.
Thanks also to Russ Chaney, retiring CEO of IAPMO (the International Association of Plumbing & Mechanical Officials), awarded a WorldSkills Fellowship .
WorldSkills programmes are made possible due to the unwavering commitment of our volunteers. At local, national, regional, and international levels, their generosity contributes to skilled young people having more opportunities to build their talents.
Together with our Members, Global Partners, and Conference Coalition Partners, 2021 shall be remembered for its innovation, as we harnessed the power of skills — the very reason for our existence — to triumph over the obstacles in our path.