Shanghai to launch new skills competition
The logo of the new skills competition in Shanghai.
Shanghai is launching a new competition on Saturday to foster skills development and promote public respect for craftsmanship.
The brand-new Shanghai vocational skills competition, named Shanghai Skills 2023, with its slogan "Skills Create Better Future," will launch at the Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center in Jiading District with 26 skills featured.
The biennial competition, the largest to ever be held in Shanghai, will involve 1,076 contestants competing in 109 skill categories, including all the 63 skills which will feature at the 47th WorldSkills Competition taking place next year in Lyon, France. The competitors include 727 skilled workers staffers and 349 students.
Competitions in the remaining skills will take place through the end of May in other districts of the city.
In addition to spaces for competitors to show off their expertise, there will also be areas for audience members to closely look at traditional and new emerging skills ranging from manufacturing and life services to smart city and intangible heritages. Spectators can view robotic production lines, sample special coffee offerings and try their hands at some of the skills, such as home decluttering and making xiaolongbao (小笼包), small steamed buns that are a famous delicacy in Jiading.
The mascot of this year's competition is designed based on xiaolongbao, a nod to the inheriting of traditional skills. Its name is Jiabao, which means baby of Jiading or treasure of Jiading.
Spectators who wish to watch the competition and try the interactive activities can make reservations on the WeChat account of the Shanghai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.
The competition will also be livestreamed on the WeChat accounts of the bureau and Shanghai Jiading, as well as on Douyin (Chinese version of TikTok) and BiliBili.
The mascot of Shanghai Skills 2023 is based on the traditional xiaolongbao, a small steamed bun.
