In November 2008, the Governing Body of ILO approved recommendations of its Committee on Sectoral and Technical Meetings and Related Issues for the ILO to convene the Global Dialogue Forum on Vocational Education and Training. The focus of the Forum was on employment and the working environment, as well as the larger lifelong learning framework to which public and private vocational education and training contribute. In November 2009 the Advisory Body for the Education and Research grouping helped to guide the ILO preparations by recommending more detailed terms of reference for the discussion at the Forum.

The purpose of the Global Dialogue Forum was to focus on:

(a) the contributions of public and private providers of vocational education and training services;
(b) training, remuneration and the teaching and learning environment of teachers and trainers in vocational education and training; and
(c) related social dialogue mechanisms.

The Forum brought together representatives from government / public sector employers and, private sector employers’ and workers' organizations, along with representatives of intergovernmental organizations in the field of training. The Final Report of the Forum contains a summary of the discussion, consensus points adopted by the Forum, and a list of participants.