Non-State Provision of Skills Development in South Asia

Development practitioners increasingly see skills development as a way to improve the employment and incomes of the poor. However, findings on the effectiveness of such trainings are typically mixed. Only programmes that entail linkages with the labour market have had a significant impact. Even with such linkages in place, what has worked and what has failed in implementation and impact? This rapid review focuses on practitioner literature about non-state provision of skills development in South Asia. Non-state providers discussed in the literature include for-profit training institutes, businesses, non-profit NGOs, and employers’ and workers’ unions.