As of today, the Atlas of New Professions includes 75 new professions under the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development. This was reported at a government meeting by the Deputy Minister of Industry, Iran Sharhan. He noted that the demand for personnel in sectors overseen by the ministry amounts to about 40,000 people. As of today, the Atlas of New Professions includes 75 new professions under the ministry.

"For example, in the metallurgy and mining sector, these include a robotic mining equipment operator, a developer of smart systems for the mining and metallurgy industries. In mechanical engineering, there is a specialist in virtual prototyping, in construction – a digital designer, Big Data analyst, and a 'Smart Home' designer. Additionally, over 40 professions have been transformed through business process automation," specified Iran Sharhan.

It was noted that this year, as part of the commissioning of 190 investment projects in the manufacturing industry, eight new professions will emerge in the mechanical engineering sector, including 3D printing and welding engineers, robotic painting system operators, and others.

Thus, there is a gradual shift from manual labor to automation, fundamentally changing society's conventional view of blue-collar professions.

Deputy Minister of Industry Iran Sharhan reported at the government meeting on the work being carried out to develop and update professional standards.

He noted that this year, in eight sectors of the ministry, the development and updating of 88 professional standards covering 544 professions are planned.

Therefore, the introduction of professional standards allows synchronization between the needs of the real economy sector and the personnel training system, increasing their demand in the labor market.

According to him, in this context, the development of dual education is of particular importance as a key tool for training qualified specialists who are fully adapted to industry requirements.

In the industrial sector, personnel training using dual education is conducted in 284 colleges, with more than 700 industrial enterprises involved.

Over 30 educational programs are being implemented within the framework of signed agreements and memorandums with enterprises.

"As a result, more than 13,000 young specialists are provided with permanent jobs annually. Additionally, career orientation events are regularly organized for thousands of schoolchildren. In 2024, more than 2,000 students underwent internships at industrial enterprises. To implement advanced educational technologies, international partnerships continue to develop," added Iran Sharhan.

Deputy Minister of Industry Iran Sharhan also reported on the ongoing work to enhance the attractiveness of professions in the sectors under the ministry's supervision.

He pointed out that in the field of geology, in June of this year, the II Geological Universiade "Satpaev" was held at the Karkaraly training and geological polygon, bringing together over 100 students from leading universities across the country.

Also, in July, the II National Field Olympiad for Young Geologists among schoolchildren took place in Semey, with 16 teams from all regions of the country participating.

"Such events contribute to early career orientation, generating interest in the profession, identifying gifted youth, and strengthening the international reputation of domestic geological education. There has been an increase in interest in mining and geology professions. Previously, the number of graduates was 1,200 per year, but in the last two years, it has surpassed 3,000 specialists annually. The employment rate in this field has reached 98%," clarified Iran Sharhan.