ASEAN constructors finalize worker standards

• 31 May 2017
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After years of effort, the ASEAN Constructors Federatton (ACF) has finalised the draft on ASEAN Construction Standard Trade Skills Training (ACSTST) which aims to apply a unified standard to skilled building workers in the region.

The ACF’s technical working group met on 24-25 February 2017 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and was attend by the eight ASEAN member countries with the exception of Laos and Brunei whcih have not yet joined. The group met, with consultation by the Malaysian Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB), to approve the final draft on skills training standards.

They agreed that the basic building skills for building workers to be trained in across ASEAN are ; Structural Steel Work, Steel Reinforcement Work, Bricklaying Work, Plastering Work, Tiling Work, and System Formwork and Scaffolding. Discussion also extended to worker skill level, qualification standards, workers’ basic, common and core competencies, training standards and assessment and certification arrangement.

Due to the varying standards and practices in each respective country, the meeting asked for the final recommendations from each member country by 25 March 2017 with different responsibilities shared among each member association. Indonesian constructors will review the plastering course, tiling will be assessed by Vietnamese constructors, bricklaying by Thai constructors, steel reinforcement by Singapore constructors, system formwork and scaffolding by the Philippines, and steel structure by Malaysia. The Cambodia and Laos constructors were unable to review any courses as the two nations do not yet have any comparable standards.

The final approval for the skilled worker training course is expected to be finalised and enacted at the 43rd ACF council meeting hosted in Jakarta, Indonesia on 21 April.

The ASEAN Constructors Federation was established on 30 May 1985 and has been holding two annual council member meetings a year for 31 consecutive years wherein council members discuss business matters arising in the ASEAN construction industry.

Its eight constructors associations representing the private construction-related companies in ASEAN are: Cambodia Constructors Association (CCA), Indonesian Constructors Association (ICA), Master Builders Association of Malaysia (MBAM), Philippine Constructors Association (PCA), Singapore Contractors Association Limited (SCAL), Thai Contractors Association (TCA), Vietnam Association of Construction Contractors (VACC) and Myanmar Construction Entrepreneurs Association (MCEA).

Laos has also indicated its interest to join the ACF, but could only attend the 41st meeting as an observer. While the Thai Contractors Association (TCA) has been assigned to bring Laos into the federation, it is expected that this landlocked nation will become the ninth member following the expected establishment of its own national contractor association.

Brunei Darussalam’s membership seems to need more time since it does not have a contractors association and has not yet expressed great interest in joining the federation.