Core skills in the age of artificial intelligence

The International Labour Organization (ILO) through its Women in STEM project has integrated soft skills training into the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority's (TESDA) 21st Century Skills course, available both in-person and online. In addition, the initiate has bolstered the Rural Impact Sourcing programme of the Department of Information and Communications Technology's (DICT), now known as SPARK. It supported people without an ICT background in transitioning into digital careers such as web development, animation outsourcing and more recently AI annotation.

© ILO

© ILO

These efforts were built on ILO’s Global Framework on Core Skills, which comprises four key groups: social and emotional skills (communication, collaboration, teamwork, conflict resolution, negotiation, and emotional intelligence); cognitive and metacognitive skills (foundational literacies, critical thinking, creative and innovative thinking, problem-solving, decision-making, strategic thinking, self-reflection, and learning to learn); basic digital skills (the ability to use digital tools, hardware, software, and operate safely online), and; basic skills for green jobs (environmental awareness, waste management, and energy and water efficiency skills). The ILO’s concept of core skills is essentially equivalent to the widely recognized 21st century skills.

© ILO

© ILO

As generative AI is bringing disruptive impact on skills required in various industries, the concept of 21st century skills call for updating. While skills such as programming and computer science knowledge have been career-boosters to date, the landscape is evolving. The demand for entry level career talents in the US is decreasing, coupled with massive tech job layoffs in 2025.

Experts suggest that while some of the 21st Century Skills will remain critical in the age of AI such as creativity, empathy, teamwork and critical thinking, new skills and knowledge are required such as AI literacy and understanding ethical and social implications of AI. The ability to design and manage human-AI collaborative work is critical to drive a human-centred future of work.

© ILO Manila

© ILO Manila

Building on the initial success on AI for Digital Novice MSMEs (AI4MSMEs), the ILO will co-create a new core skills curricula with partners like TESDA and DICT. It will further reflect ongoing global discussions on the new skills set required in the age of AI combined with the need to fast-adapt the adult learning systems.

Initial target will be the basic AI literacy for non-techy MSME workers, youth entering into labour market, workers shifting from the AI-impacted sectors, and a growing number of individuals (particularly women and people with disability) aspiring to work from home for the digital platform jobs. Issues of relevant soft skills that might not be developed if students overly rely on AI tools will be revisited. Programming skills will be re-exaimed in the context of the growing popularity of no-code programming and vibe coding.

Digital PINAS is a joint programme that supports MSME digitalization by addressing policy, regulatory, and systemic barriers to digital inclusion. It is implemented by ILO, ITC, and UNDP in partnership with the DICT and other government agencies. All joint programmes of the Joint SDG Fund are led by UN Resident Coordinators and implemented by the agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations development system. With sincere appreciation for the contributions from the European Union and Governments of Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and our private sector funding partners, for a transformative movement towards achieving the SDGs by 2030.

For further information, please contact ILO Manila via this email.