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There is a strong demand for skills training in Sri Lanka, such that only 58% of applications received by four major public sector vocational training providers in 1997 were accepted. Course offerings have mushroomed in response to the high demand, but at the expense of quality. Vocational training institutions offer 321 courses, most (70%) of which are not very relevant to the employment market, resulting in a gross mismatch between the skills provided by the vocational training institutions and the skills demanded by industry and the services sector. There is a need to improve the quality and relevance of skills training programs to ensure graduates are employable. There is also an urgent need to address unemployment among youth and females, whose unemployment rate is twice that of males. About 85% of the unemployed are from rural areas, and 54% of them are female. Close to half (46%) of the targeted beneficiaries fall below the poverty line. A presidential task force on implementation of reforms in the technical education and vocational training (TEVT) sector was established by the Government. The reforms focus on quality and standards, relevance, access, institutional efficiency, and resource mobilization through active partnership with the private sector and nongovernment organizations (NGOs).