Development and dissemination of knowledge
The ILO’s InFocus Programme on Investing in Knowledge, Skills and Employability is committed to building the knowledge base on skills delivery for the poor, including workers in informal employment. In this regard the programme has been documenting innovative practices on how formal and non-formal training delivery systems can better serve the needs of the workers outside the formal labour market and disseminates the findings on its web site and through publications (see list of working papers in the Informal Economy Series). The aim is to draw lessons, disseminate good practice and use the outcome to develop new tools.
Lessons learnt - Good practices
A number of lessons have emerged from the various studies as well as from the execution of several technical cooperation projects.The more successful programmes are those that emphasise employability and are capable of:
- identifying the capabilities of the target group -in particular educational and social background- and finding ways to upgrade their skills;
- identifying potential opportunities;
- match both in a timely manner while differentiating the modalities of skills delivery between various target groups (women, youths, ethnic minorities, those who are illiterate, disabled, etc.);
- ensure linkages with adequate support services other than training;
- strengthen institutional capacity of training organizations and other support services as well as organizational capacity of target group;
- address issues related to inadequate policy and regulatory framework.
An integrated approach
Higher productivity is needed to improve job quality but training alone does not necessarily result in higher productivity. A combination -and, most important, coordination- of different support services is often needed. Complementary support services may include literacy and basic education, micro-credit, business development services, social services. Also, since many poor people work in the informal economy, a policy and regulatory environment that is conducive to employment creation, equity, micro-enterprise development, is crucial, as is institutional strengthening.
Gender
Skills development is one of the instruments to further gender equality. Unless skills development initiatives have an explicit gender equality agenda there is a real risk that they may contribute to increasing gender gaps rather than promoting gender equality. However training on its own is not sufficient to overcome labour market segmentation and it should be part of a wider policy framework.
Training methods
On-the-job training or in circumstances familiar to the trainees are the most effective ones, the aim being to tackle as far as possible immediate problems with exercises that have an immediate effect. Depending upon the circumstances this may be combined with flexible modular systems that include various components of different levels of complexity. This enables individuals to move from one module to another, according to their needs. There is scope to increase the coverage and cost effectiveness of training through the use of distance learning and ICT in training programmes. This is an area with a lot of potential provided such technology is carefully adapted to the characteristics and needs of the end-users in the informal economy.
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