Contact us

Skills and Employability Branch (SKILLS)

Staff
Employment Policy Department

International Labour Office 4 Route des Morillons

Geneva 22
Switzerland
CH-1211

Tel : +41 22 799 7512
Fax : +41 22 799 6310
Email : skills@ilo.org
Website : www.ilo.org/skills

Recent publications and reports

  1. Apprenticeships

    ILO Toolkit for Quality Apprenticeships

    The ILO Toolkit for Quality Apprenticeships aims to improve the design and implementation of apprenticeship systems and programmes. The Toolkit consists of two volumes: Guide for Policy Makers, and a Guide for Practitioners.

  2. Career Guidance

    Career guidance policy and practice in the pandemic: Results of a joint international survey

    This joint global report reflects how career guidance services responded to the challenges posed by Covid-19. It highlights the range of solutions found, especially digital, and the challenges felt by services, practitioners and clients.

  3. Guide and digital interactive assessment tool on Making TVET and skills development inclusive for all

    The guide aims to help skills decision-makers and practitioners assess to what extent their TVET system is currently excluding certain individuals or groups, identifies underlying reasons, and provides practical ideas on what could be done to redress inequalities.

  4. Guidelines on Rapid Assessment of reskilling and upskilling needs in response to the COVID-19 crisis

    The guidelines focus on three broad types of impact on the labour market, and hence on demand for skills and opportunities for workers, with implications for reskilling and upskilling needs.

  5. ILO Evaluation Tool for the Review of a Country’s Apprenticeship Policy and System

    The ILO Evaluation Tool comprises guidelines and questionnaires and gives guidance on how to evaluate a country’s apprenticeship policy and system.

  6. The Digitization of TVET and Skills Systems

    This joint ILO-UNESCO report provides a global, high-level overview of how digitalization is affecting TVET and skills systems.

  7. Skills to combat forced labour

    The ILO has launched two Global Guidelines on the prevention and reintegration of victims of forced labour through skills and lifelong learning.

  8. Rapid STED: A practical guide

    This new guide provides advice on implementing an updated approach to STED. It aims to speed the process and to build capacity among national and sector partners.

Skills and Employability Branch (SKILLS)

Governments, employers' associations and trade unions around the world are working to improve the employability of workers, move young people into productive and decent work, and increase the productivity of enterprises through better quality and relevant training. The Skills and Employability Branch conducts comparative research and provides policy guidelines and technical assistance to help constituents integrate skills development into national and sector development strategies.

The ILO's work with constituents focuses primarily on three areas: linking training to current labour market needs as well as anticipating and building competencies for the jobs of the future; building quality apprenticeship systems and incorporating core skills into training for young people; and expanding access to employment-related training in rural communities in order to improve livelihoods, reduce poverty, and equip women and men to work in the formal economy.

What's new

  1. Virtual Conference

    Continental virtual conference on skills anticipation and matching in Africa

    Under the auspices of the Skills Initiative for Africa, (SIFA) the Africa Union Commission, and African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NPEAD), with the technical support of the International Labour Organization will be holding an Africa wide conference on Skills Anticipation.

  2. Global framework on core skills for life and work in the 21st century

    The new ILO global framework reflects the ongoing transformations and the emerging opportunities in the world of work. Nineteen core skills are listed as essential both for work and life.

  3. Infographic

    Competency-Based Training (CBT): An Introductory Manual for Practitioners

    The competency-based training (CBT) approach to TVET is highly effective to ensure that training programmes remain relevant to the labour market.

  4. Investing in career guidance

    This leaflet, authored by six international agencies, reflects on the crucial role of career guidance in supporting youth and adults in skilling, re-skilling and securing successful careers and livelihoods during economic recovery.

  5. Skilling, upskilling and reskilling of employees, apprentices & interns during the COVID-19 pandemic: Findings from a global survey of enterprises

    This survey report is the accomplishment of the collaborative efforts of 10 international and regional development organizations.

  6. 3rd ILO Skills Challenge Innovation Call

    Preventing forced labour in Africa through skills and lifelong learning

    The ILO Skills Innovation Facility, in collaboration with the Alliance 8.7, is calling on entities or legally recognized non-profit organizations to share innovative ideas and solutions that can contribute to the prevention of forced labour in Africa through skills and lifelong learning.

  7. Key results

    Applying the G20 Training Strategy: A Partnership of the ILO and the Russian Federation (Phase 2)

    The project aimed to support skills development in Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, the Russian Federation, Jordan and Viet Nam.

  8. Developing national career development support systems: Pathways to enhance lifelong career guidance, career education and career development support for workers

    This joint report by the ILO and the European Training Foundation (ETF) presents an analysis of how to develop career development support systems, including career guidance, career education and career development support for workers.

  9. 2nd ILO Skills Challenge Innovation Call

    ILO issues call for ideas and solutions to support e-formality through skills development in Latin America

    Skills development and innovation for reducing informality in the region is a key objective of this ILO call, which will provide financial and technical support to IT projects that boost formalization through the improvement of skills.

  10. Strategic Staff Management in SMEs to Support Lifelong Learning: A Literature Review

    This literature review provides a solid entry point into the still under-researched area of staff management in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

  11. ILO Skills Virtual Fair

    Lifelong learning is key to development and resilience in the Global South

    The first ILO Skills Virtual Fair, held on 21-22 April, brought together participants from 132 countries for a series of thematic and regional sessions, as well as exhibition stands to establish skills partnerships and promote innovation in the Global South.

  12. New ILO Skills and Lifelong Learning Knowledge Sharing Platform

    The new ILO Skills and Lifelong Learning Knowledge Sharing Platform provides users with different knowledge needs with quality information and resources on skills development. It aims to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas among institutions, enterprises and experts from all countries on how to improve employability and productivity.

  13. Capability Statement

    Brochure: ILO Skills and Employability Branch

    The Skills and Employability Branch works with ILO constituents for a better future of work through skills development and to ensure that education and training systems become more flexible and diversified.

  14. Skills development in the time of COVID-19: Taking stock of the initial responses in technical and vocational education and training

    This report is based on the findings of an interagency survey on technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and skills development in the time of COVID-19. The online survey, which was targeted at TVET providers, policymakers and social partners, was implemented by the ILO in collaboration with the UNESCO and the World Bank over the period from 5 April to 15 May 2020.