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The European Training Foundation (ETF) has a long-standing interest in the relationship between international migration and human capital in the European Union's neighbourhood region. This key relationship is central to any consideration of migration and economic development and is of vital importance to labour markets, particularly in countries with high rates of emigration or immigration. This report provides an initial comparative overview of the data from Armenia and Georgia. It analyses the results of two countrywide surveys implemented between October 2011 and January 2012 involving interviews with 8,000 respondents (both potential migrants and returned migrants). The ETF surveys focused particularly on the connection between qualifications and labour migration. They provide data on the qualifications of both potential and returned migrants, whether these qualifications were used while working abroad, whether new qualifications were added during the stay abroad, and to what extent the qualifications of returned migrants are being used in the domestic economy and labour market. This data is used to assess the extent of brain gain, brain drain and brain circulation, three key factors in the evaluation of the overall cost and benefits of migration.

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Young people in Syria are facing large difficulties in entering the labor market, due to labor supply pressures and weak labor demand from both public and private sectors, leading to persistently high levels of unemployment among the youth. Apart from tabulations of existing data, published research on the Syrian labor market is practically non-existent. This study provides unique analytical insights into the education-employment link in Syria. Using data from the 2001 and 2002 Labor Force Surveys, we describe the current labor market situation, estimate returns to education, and analyze the transition from school to work for young people. We find that rates of return to education are low by international standards, but increase with the level of educational attainment. We find evidence that higher education is attractive because it increases the chances of finding a job, decreases queuing times for sought-after jobs in the public sector, and increases the opportunities for working abroad. Prior to 2001, graduates of intermediate institutes were guaranteed jobs in the public sector where government-set pay scales dictate wages. As a result, over 80 per cent of intermediate institute graduates work in the public sector. In 2001, the Syrian government stopped guaranteeing jobs to graduates of higher institutes, who now have to look for jobs in the private sector that do not necessarily match the training they received. Indeed, we find that the rates of return to schooling are especially low for male graduates of intermediate institutes working in the private sector, indicating little benefit in terms of skills demanded.

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This study is part of European Training Foundation (ETF) research on pathways for improving access to work/employment for young unemployed and the first time job seekers. Youth unemployment has turned out to be a challenge to policy makers as it persists in being higher than average. This is particularly notable in ex-transition countries and is also the case in Croatia. This study will try to identify the main impediments to access for youth to the labour market in Croatia in order to better design policy measures and seek new pathways to sustainable and good jobs on the labour market. The methodology used is desk research including use of Labour Force Survey microdata base and other establishment survey and educational data. The main aim is to look at labour market outcomes of different educational streams and the rate of drop-out from the educational system. Interviews with different stakeholders have also been carried out in order to find out which particular barriers are regarded as the most important in youth access to the labour market.

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While smart specialisation is primarily about the economics of specialisation, vocational education and training (VET) and skills are the engine that drive smart specialisation. The [European Training Foundation] ETF's methodological approach on skills for smart specialisation anchors the implementation of smart specialisation strategies in a realistic supply of relevant skills - in particular at medium and high levels. It opens up discussions about skilling, upskilling, reskilling and career development support in the context of the twin digital and green transitions. It offers a concrete tool to connect vocational education and training through productivity-enhancing skills to the drive for innovation, growth and competitiveness. The ETF's skills for smart specialisation approach builds pathways for focused VET excellence to flexibly supply relevant human capital and workforce retraining for the private sector for higher productivity and quality jobs.

To develop a valid and usable toolkit, the methodology, tools and approaches have been tested to ensure their appropriateness to the requirements of implementing smart specialisation strategies. The testing was first implemented in 2019 in Montenegro in the tourism and energy sectors, which were identified as priorities in the national smart specialisation strategy. In 2020, the testing was expanded to the Republic of Moldova, where the preliminary mapping had identified energy (focus on renewable energy) and food processing as potential priorities for smart specialisation. Finally, in 2021–2022, the methodology was enriched and applied at regional level in Ukraine, in two pilot regions: Rivne and Kharkiv. The lessons learnt are summarised in this toolkit, which contains more than a set of research methods - it also embraces the theoretical and contextual perspectives underlying the analysis, along with a justification for using the chosen approach and tools, and comments from partners.

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This report is one of a series produced by the European Training Foundation [ETF] on the state of play of human resources development (HRD) in general and vocational education and training systems in particular, in the countries of the Mediterranean region. The aim of the project was to draw a clear picture of the latest developments in the national HRD system in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and to highlight the main issues and challenges that should be addressed. Specifically, the project aimed to draft a comprehensive report on HRD in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. HRD policies and systems cover, among others, education, higher education, initial and continuing technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and training for employment. The contents are as follows: Current situation and trends in human resources development and the labour market; Structure of the human resources development system; Recent human resources development reforms; Institutional capacity, and planning, monitoring and evaluation resources; Summary of key findings. Included as annexes are: List of people interviewed; National system-level interventions; Human resources development and investment; Basic labour statistics.

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We analyse the role of training in mitigating the negative impact of technical and organizational changes on the employment prospects of older workers. Using a panel of French firms in the late 1990s, we first estimate wage bill share equations for different age groups. Consistently with what is found in the literature, we find that adopting new technologies and innovative work practices negatively affects the wage bill share of older workers. In contrast, training older workers more than average increases their share in the wage bill in the next period. So, training contributes to offset the negative impact of [information and communication technologies] ICT and innovative work practices. However, it does not reduce the age bias associated with these innovative devices: the interaction terms between training and ICT/innovative work practices are either insignificant or negative. As a second step, we estimate the impact of ICT, innovative work practices and training on employment flows by age group in the next period. We get similar results to those obtained with wage bill shares. Overall, training appears to have a positive impact on the employability of older workers, but it offers limited prospects to dampen the age bias associated with new technologies and innovative work practices.

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This background paper has been prepared to report on the current situation in five key areas essential in terms of the partnership between education and the economy in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. These five key areas are identified as: the role of the state and the social partners in supporting the links between education and training, and the economy; the contribution of industry to education and training; education and training to underpin economic growth processes; supporting people at the interface between education and training, and work; and the role of teacher training in linking education and training, and the economy. The paper identifies key trends within each area and the major problems are discussed. Brief mention is made of some initiatives and practices in place. The paper concludes with a summary of human resource development strategies to complement employment strategies under these five areas. Show less