Dr Kourosh Parand

Kourosh Parand (born 23 February 1972), is Deputy Minister of Co-operatives, Labor and Social Welfare, Member of the Supreme Council for Education and President of the National Technical Vocational Training Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Kourosh Parand is also a Professor (Computer Science) at Shahid Beheshti University and with over 80 ISI journal articles and both an h-index of 17 and a i10-index of 30, he has also been recognized as "National Researcher of the Year" on many occasions.

In 2011, Professor (Prof) Parand was appointed as President of the National Technical Vocational Training Organization Iran TVTO and since then has designed and overseen a comprehensive and multifaceted reform plan for the vocational education system of Iran, offering Hi-Tech and innovative training programs in order to fill the "practical skills gap" that exists for Iranians in order to seek employment.

A 2015 UNESCO - NESPAP report on the National Education Systems and Policies of Iran said: "Given the limited numbers of students accessing vocational study as part of their senior high school suggests TVET has not traditionally been an area where significant investment would reap significant return. Based on government plans, it appears that this is shifting, with a focus being placed on expanding opportunities for distance courses, expanding life skills training opportunities for parents and students and developing improved facilities to encourage more students to engage in senior high school and TVET programs including via boarding schools and central dormitories in rural and nomadic areas. In addition, a focus will be placed on enhancing the qualifications of teachers within the Department of Technical-Vocational Training."

In early 2015, Kourosh Parand created his "Vocational Skills Based Diplomacy" strategy which entailed working with international organizations and governments in order boost Iran`s presence and diplomatic efforts in target countries.

Iran TVTO has worked with UNESCO, UNHCR and UNIDO to offer training to Afghan and Iraqi refugees as well as agreements in place to offer vocational training to the Governments of Afghanistan, Iraq, Tanzania, Burundi, Lebanon, Tanzania, Burundi, Sierra Leone, and Uganda.

As well as this, Iran TVTO secured the rights to offer collaborative training programs and international exams in Iran, further boosting job prospects of Iranians and raising the profile of TVET education in Iran.

Recently a new initiative called "Training, Production, Marketing and Sales" was launched in Mid 2015 by Prof Parand. This private-public consortium approach provides the necessary skills to new entrepreneurs and offers them the required training, skills and potential to call upon experienced mentors throughout the launch of their new business in order to support their product life-cycle. In this model the state provides various training programs including soft skills, whilst the private sector provides experienced mentors and financial support, guaranteed by Iran TVTO. This new initiative has been recognized by many international agencies including UNESCO and UNIDO as fundamental in boosting entrepreneurship in Iran and curbing unemployment.

In December 2015, as per a decree from the Minister of Science, Research & Technology, Professor Parand was also made a member of the Iranian National Commission for UNESCO.