The Skills Road : Skills for Employability in Uzbekistan

This report addresses a fundamental question facing policymakers in Uzbekistan: are worker skills hindering employment outcomes? The main finding of the report is that, indeed, worker skills gaps are hindering employment outcomes in Uzbekistan. In fact, employers—particularly formal sector employers—seek workers who possess both cognitive and non-cognitive skills. The higher employability and higher wage rates among higher skilled workers is mostly explained by the use of those skills in workplaces. But, skills gaps persist, leading a large share of employers to report shortages of high-skilled workers. These shortages are resulting in high wage premiums—tertiary graduates earn on average 55 percent more than similar workers with a general secondary education. However, large variations in observed skills among adults with the same level of educational attainment indicate that formal education is failing too many people. The report outlines weaknesses in the way skills are formed in Uzbekistan. While skills are developed during different stages in the life cycle and a host of actors are involved—families, for example, play a central role—the education and training system has a mixed record in skill formation. The report argues that the government could do more to align the skills imparted through the education and training system with the needs of employers. The government can also do more to get children off to the right start by investing in early childhood development, where rates of return to investment are generally very high and important soft skills are learned. Finally, more can be done to match the supply of skills with employer demand by improving the use of information in matching skills to jobs in the labor market.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ajwad, Mohamed Ihsan, Abdulloev, Ilhom, Audy, Robin, Hut, Stefan, de Laat, Joost, Kheyfets, Igor, Larrison, Jennica, Nikoloski, Zlatko, Torracchi, Federico
Language:English
en_US
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2014-09
Subjects:ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS, ACCESS TO INFORMATION, ACCESS TO PRESCHOOL, ACTIVE LABOR, ACTIVE LABOR MARKET, ACTIVE LABOR MARKET PROGRAMS, ADULT EDUCATION, ADULTS, AGE COHORT, AGE GROUP, BASIC EDUCATION, BUS SCHEDULE, CITIZENS, COGNITIVE SKILLS, COGNITIVE TEST, COMPUTER SKILLS, COUNTRY OF DESTINATION, CRITICAL THINKING, CURRENT LABOR FORCE, CURRICULA, DECISION MAKING, DEPENDENCY RATIOS, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DISSEMINATION, EARLY CHILDHOOD, EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT, EARLY INTERVENTIONS, ECONOMIC GROWTH, EDUCATED WORKERS, EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT, EDUCATION SYSTEM, EDUCATION SYSTEMS, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENTS, ELDERLY, ELIMINATION OF POVERTY, EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT, EMPLOYABILITY, EMPLOYEE, EMPLOYMENT, EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES, EMPLOYMENT PROSPECTS, EMPLOYMENT RATE, EMPLOYMENT RATES, EMPLOYMENT SHARE, EMPLOYMENT STATUS, ENROLLMENT LEVELS, ENROLLMENT RATES, FEMALE EMPLOYMENT, FEMALE LABOR, FEMALE LABOR FORCE, FEMALE POPULATION, FINDING WORK, FIRM GROWTH, FLOW OF INFORMATION, FORMAL EDUCATION, FORMAL SECTOR WORKERS, FORMAL TRAINING, GENERAL EDUCATION, GENERIC SKILLS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES, GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT, GROSS ENROLLMENT, GROSS ENROLLMENT RATE, GROSS ENROLLMENT RATES, GROSS NATIONAL INCOME, HIGH EMPLOYMENT, HIGH POPULATION GROWTH, HIGH POPULATION GROWTH RATES, HIGH SCHOOL, HIGHER EDUCATION, HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS, HIGHER LEVEL OF EDUCATION, HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION, HOUSEHOLD SURVEY, HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS, HUMAN CAPITAL, INDUSTRIALIZATION, INFLOW OF REMITTANCES, INFORMAL ECONOMY, INFORMAL EMPLOYMENT, INFORMAL SECTOR, INFORMAL SECTOR WORKERS, INTERNAL MIGRATION, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION, INTERNATIONAL LABOR ORGANIZATION, INTERNATIONAL MIGRANT, INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, JOB CREATION, JOB PLACEMENT, JOB SEARCH, JOB SECURITY, JOB SEEKERS, JOB VACANCIES, JOB VACANCY, JOBS, LABOR CONTRACT, LABOR FORCE, LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION, LABOR MARKET, LABOR MARKET DEMAND, LABOR MARKET INDICATORS, LABOR MARKET INFORMATION, LABOR MARKET INFORMATION SYSTEMS, LABOR MARKET OUTCOMES, LABOR MARKET PROGRAM, LABOR MARKETS, LABOR MIGRANTS, LABOR ORGANIZATION, LABOR PRODUCTIVITY, LABOUR, LABOUR MARKET, LEARNING OUTCOMES, LEGAL STATUS, LIFE-LONG LEARNING, LITERACY, LITERACY SKILLS, LOW-INCOME COUNTRIES, MIGRANT, MIGRANTS, NATURAL RESOURCES, NUMBER OF PEOPLE, NUMERACY, OLDER ADULTS, OLDER MEN, OLDER WOMEN, OLDER WORKERS, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING PROGRAM, OPEN UNEMPLOYMENT, ORAL COMMUNICATION, PARTICIPATION RATES, PAYING JOBS, PERSONALITY, PHYSICAL HEALTH, PHYSICAL WORK, POLICY GOALS, POLICY MAKERS, POPULATION GROWTH, POPULATION GROWTH RATES, PRESCHOOL EDUCATION, PRIVATE ENTERPRISES, PRIVATE FIRMS, PRIVATE SECTOR, PRIVATE SECTOR WORKERS, PROBLEM SOLVING, PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS, PRODUCTIVE EMPLOYMENT, PRODUCTIVITY GAINS, PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH, PRODUCTIVITY IMPROVEMENTS, PRODUCTIVITY INCREASE, PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION, PROVISION OF SERVICES, PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS, RAPID POPULATION GROWTH, READING, REAL WAGE, REGIONAL COOPERATION, REMITTANCES, RURAL AREAS, RURAL RESIDENTS, RURAL WORKERS, SALARIED WORKERS, SCHOOL COVERAGE, SCHOOL ENROLLMENT, SCHOOLING, SECONDARY EDUCATION, SECONDARY SCHOOLS, SERVICE SECTOR, SKILL ACQUISITION, SKILL TRAINING, SKILL TYPE, SKILLED WORKERS, SKILLS ASSESSMENT, SMALL BUSINESSES, STAGES OF LIFE, STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISE, STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISES, STUDENT ASSESSMENT, TEACHING, TEACHING QUALITY, TECHNICAL EDUCATION, TECHNICAL SKILLS, TERTIARY EDUCATION, TERTIARY LEVEL, TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY, TRAINING PROGRAMS, TRAINING SYSTEM, UNEMPLOYED, UNIVERSAL ACCESS, UNPAID FAMILY WORKERS, WAGE EMPLOYMENT, WAGE GROWTH, WAGE PREMIUM, WAGE RATES, WORKER, WORKFORCE, WORKING-AGE POPULATION, WORKING-AGE POPULATIONS, WORLD POPULATION, YOUNG MEN, YOUNG PEOPLE, YOUNGER WORKERS, YOUTH, YOUTH LABOR, YOUTH POPULATION,
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/01/20241167/uzbekistan-skills-road-skills-employability-uzbekistan
https://hdl.handle.net/10986/20389
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This report addresses a fundamental question facing policymakers in Uzbekistan: are worker skills hindering employment outcomes? The main finding of the report is that, indeed, worker skills gaps are hindering employment outcomes in Uzbekistan. In fact, employers—particularly formal sector employers—seek workers who possess both cognitive and non-cognitive skills. The higher employability and higher wage rates among higher skilled workers is mostly explained by the use of those skills in workplaces. But, skills gaps persist, leading a large share of employers to report shortages of high-skilled workers. These shortages are resulting in high wage premiums—tertiary graduates earn on average 55 percent more than similar workers with a general secondary education. However, large variations in observed skills among adults with the same level of educational attainment indicate that formal education is failing too many people. The report outlines weaknesses in the way skills are formed in Uzbekistan. While skills are developed during different stages in the life cycle and a host of actors are involved—families, for example, play a central role—the education and training system has a mixed record in skill formation. The report argues that the government could do more to align the skills imparted through the education and training system with the needs of employers. The government can also do more to get children off to the right start by investing in early childhood development, where rates of return to investment are generally very high and important soft skills are learned. Finally, more can be done to match the supply of skills with employer demand by improving the use of information in matching skills to jobs in the labor market.