Vocational education and training - VET

The OECD Skills Strategy provides an integrated, cross-government framework to help countries understand more about how to invest in skills in a way that will transform lives and drive economies. It is designed to provide a basis on which governments can begin converting “better skills policies” into jobs, growth, and “better lives”.

This paper examines the effectiveness of a variety of policy interventions that have been tried in developing and transition economies with the goal of improving women's employability and quality of work. The programs include active labor market programs, education and training programs, programs that facilitate work (such as childcare subsidies, parental leave programs and land titling programs), microfinance programs, entrepreneurship and leadership programs, and conditional cash transfer programs. Some of these policy interventions were undertaken to increase employment, some to increase female employment, and some for other reasons.
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2012/09/05/000158349_20120905133912/Rendered/PDF/wps6189.pdf

The EU initiative "An Agenda for new skills and jobs" forms part of the Europe 2020 Strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. A key aim of Europe 2020 is to ensure that 75 % of men and women aged 20-64 are in employment by 2020. The Strategy also aims to cut the number of early school leavers to 10% and increase the number of young people in higher or equivalent vocational education to at least 40%. The Agenda proposes thirteen actions which will contribute to improving the functioning of Europe's labour market. They will help to increase job flexibility and security, provide incentives to invest in training, ensure decent working conditions and facilitate job creation.
http://bookshop.europa.eu/en/an-agenda-for-new-skills-and-jobs-pbKE3111083/