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| US$ 101.5M to Sri Lanka for skills development |
The World Bank approved a US$ 101.5 million IDA credit to expand the availability of
employable workers by increasing access to high quality, labour market relevant
skills development programmes. The project will open new career prospects for
skilled employment that is critical to sustain growth in a middle income
country.
Sri Lanka's workforce is the most educated in South Asia: about 96% of its citizens complete primary school and 87% secondary school, and there is gender parity in school completion. Despite a large number of educated young workers, Sri Lanka's labour market is characterized by high youth unemployment, high underemployment, and considerable informality. Although the overall unemployment rate declined from 9% in 2000 to 4% in 2012, about 20% of 15–24 year-olds were still unemployed in 2012.
(a) Programme Support to the
SSDP;
(b) Innovation, Results Monitoring, and Capacity Building.
The
Project will be implemented by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Skills
Development, working closely with the Ministry of Finance and Planning and
other relevant ministries and agencies.