Skills Development in Afghanistan
After three decades of conflict, Afghanistan needs a well-trained and flexible workforce to help rebuild the country. The conflict has decimated Afghanistan's training infrastructure, torn the fabric of human society, and relegated the country to the status of one of the least developed in the world. The country's efforts to emerge from near-total collapse is hampered by a number of factors, one of which is absence of a well-educated and -trained labor force able to acquire the skills and trades the country needs as it grows. A well-trained labor force will yield higher levels of productivity and be able to accommodate the changing needs of a post conflict economy while ensuring higher earnings and greater mobility for workers. Though most of the Afghan labor force is in the informal sector, skills acquisition judiciously combined with literacy and numeric programs should produce a workforce able to adapt modern production technologies and take advantage of opportunities through self-employment and small-enterprise development. The report is organized into four sections. Section one provides an introduction to Afghanistan. Section two focuses on recent economic trends and labor market demands. Section three is an overview of the country's education and training sector, while examining the main providers, recent changes in institutional framework, and key issues in the vocational education and training (VET) sector. Finally, section four reviews possible reforms the country will need in order to improve the delivery of VET services.
Summary: | After three decades of conflict,
Afghanistan needs a well-trained and flexible workforce to
help rebuild the country. The conflict has decimated
Afghanistan's training infrastructure, torn the fabric
of human society, and relegated the country to the status of
one of the least developed in the world. The country's
efforts to emerge from near-total collapse is hampered by a
number of factors, one of which is absence of a
well-educated and -trained labor force able to acquire the
skills and trades the country needs as it grows. A
well-trained labor force will yield higher levels of
productivity and be able to accommodate the changing needs
of a post conflict economy while ensuring higher earnings
and greater mobility for workers. Though most of the Afghan
labor force is in the informal sector, skills acquisition
judiciously combined with literacy and numeric programs
should produce a workforce able to adapt modern production
technologies and take advantage of opportunities through
self-employment and small-enterprise development. The report
is organized into four sections. Section one provides an
introduction to Afghanistan. Section two focuses on recent
economic trends and labor market demands. Section three is
an overview of the country's education and training
sector, while examining the main providers, recent changes
in institutional framework, and key issues in the vocational
education and training (VET) sector. Finally, section four
reviews possible reforms the country will need in order to
improve the delivery of VET services. |
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