Many of the key characteristics of market-driven VET reform strategies can and should be incorporated into the design of pro-poor training strategies. In particular, the state should perform a largely regulatory and facilitatory role while actual training provision should, wherever possible, be contracted out to independent training providers. The state must, therefore, take primary responsibility for the funding of such a strategy and, in consultation with the major stakeholders, take the lead in the overall design of the strategy with clear priorities and related resource allocations.
There are clearly limits, however, with respect to the capacity of the state to perform these functions effectively, on the one hand, and the role of competitive training markets, on the other. Training reforms in Chile are frequently held up as a good example of a privatised training system with a strong focus on the unemployed and other disadvantaged groups. And yet, as noted earlier, the replicability of this reform model may be quite limited, particularly in low income developing countries.
Recent wide-ranging reforms of national vocational training systems in South Africa and Tanzania demonstrate the range of problems, both with respect to the design and implementation of new policies and practices, that have to be surmounted (see Boxes 13 and 14). The attempt by the World Bank to introduce training vouchers for informal sector operators in the informal sector in Kenya also highlights the need for strong institutions if competitive training markets are to function properly (see Box 15).
More generally, the capacity of the state to tackle mounting social exclusion is being called into question. Alternative and complementary systems of support for the poor must, therefore, be found which rely mainly on community and private sector initiatives. The ILO, for example, refers to this new strategy as "social economy" with new partnerships of "co-operatives, mutual societies, and other non-profit organisations" spearheading a process of community development (see ILO, 1998).
EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING PAPERS 43 Learning to change: Skills development among the economically vulnerable and socially excluded in developing countries Paul Bennell Employment and Training Department International Labour Office Geneva First published 1999
To learn more about this author, visit International Labour Organization's Website.
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