Interventions aimed at increasing the income generating capacity of the poor, such as vocational training, micro-finance or business grants, are widespread in the developing world.
... See More + How to target such interventions is an open question. Many programs are self-targeted, but if perceived returns differ from actual returns, those self-selecting to participate may not be those for whom the program is the most effective. The authors analyze an unusual experiment with very high take-up of business grants and vocational skills training, randomly assigned among nearly all households in selected poor rural communities in Nicaragua. On average, the interventions resulted in increased participation in non-agricultural employment and higher income from related activities. The paper investigates whether targeting could have resulted in higher returns by analyzing heterogeneity in impacts by stated baseline demand, prior participation in non-agricultural activities, and a wide range of complementary asset endowments. The results reveal little heterogeneity along observed baseline characteristics. However, the poorest households are more likely to enter and have higher profits in non-agricultural self-employment, while less poor households assigned to the training have higher non-agricultural wages. This heterogeneity appears related to unobserved characteristics that are not revealed by stated baseline demand, and more difficult to target. In this context, self-targeting may reduce the poverty-reduction potential of income generating interventions, possibly because low aspirations limit the poor's ex-ante demand for productive interventions while the interventions have the potential to increase those aspirations. Overall, targeting productive interventions to poor households would not have come at the cost of reducing their effectiveness. By contrast, self-targeting would have limited poverty reduction by excluding the poorest.
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Policy Research Working Paper WPS6389 MAR 01, 2013
This project aims at developing training and education in the economic sectors where employment is on the rise. Young employment should therefore be improved.
... See More + Negative impacts may include air pollution, dust pollution, soil erosion and noise increase during the construction of new buildings. Solid and liquid waste will also be generated from the construction site. Mitigation measures include: ensure proper disposal of solid and liquid waste, water soil during construction to avoid dust pollution, incinerate waste from the construction site whenever possible, train workers on environmental concerns and proper waste disposal
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This report documents progress, analyzes strengths and weaknesses of the Xinjiang Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) system, and proposes recommendations that can be used to enrich policy dialogue and open opportunities for future cooperation between Xinjiang and the World Bank.
... See More + The World Bank team discussed and agreed with the foreign capital project management office of the Xinjiang education department, the main counterpart for this study, on the selection criteria for the Principal Investigator (PI) responsible for data collection and the desk review of available documentation and interviews with key informants, including officials from related departments and representatives of training institutes and enterprises. This report is composed of three sections. The first section provides a brief overview and analysis of the Xinjiang setting, including economic trends, status of the workforce and TVET system. This is followed by a summary of the Systems Approach for Better Education Results (SABER)-Workforce Development (WfD) results including three dimensions, nine policy goals and 27 policy actions. Lastly, a brief policy analysis along with recommendations reflect upon the results of the SABER-WfD study by addressing key challenges and weaknesses of the Xinjiang TVET system in the context of Xinjiang's medium to long-term education and talent development plans. In medium to long-term, the quality of Xinjiang TVET system needs to be improved through enhanced governance, quality assurance and monitoring and evaluation, and through improved connections with quality basic education. The goal is to set up a flexible and diversified modern TVET system for a skilled workforce and to achieve the objectives of the Xinjiang medium and long-term education and talent development plans. Efforts also should be made to enable some TVET schools and programs to become recognized among the top level in China.
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