This study does not necessarily represent the views of The World Bank or Governments they represent. We are grateful for the comments received at the 2006 Conference on the Economics of Education (Dijon, France). We are particularly thankful to Clive Belfield and Helen Ladd for their very detailed and helpful comments. We are also grateful to Michelle Riboud for her comments.

Are retraining programs for the unemployed more effective than job search assistance? Governments of the member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development have considerable experience with retraining programs in a variety of industrial settings. Evaluations of these programs show that the results are disappointing, however. This article discusses the factors associated with retraining programs for two types of workers: those laid off en masse and the long-term unemployed. Evaluations indicate poor results for both groups: retraining programs are generally no more effective than job search assistance in increasing either reemployment probabilities or postintervention earnings, and they are between two and four times more expensive than job search assistance. Industrial countries spend sizable amounts on labor programs for the unemployed. In 1992 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) spent between 0.1 percent (Japan) and 2.6 percent (Sweden) of gross domestic product on labor programs. In several countries this training is "the largest category of active programs, and is often perceived as the principal alternative to regular unemployment benefits" (OECD 1994a). Countries in Eastern Europe-where the role of active labor programs is a topic of current debate-also spent between 0.2 and 3 percent of gross domestic product on these programs (OECD 1994a). Yet possibly because such assistance is viewed almost as a fundamental right in Western Europe, these programs are rarely evaluated outside the United States. This article surveys evaluations of retraining programs in the OECD countries, highlighting the shortcomings of such schemes and illustrating the payoff to investing in rigorous evaluations. We examine only the evaluations of retraining programs, so our focus is largely on adults with previous work experience rather than on unemployed school-leavers. We distinguish here between retraining schemes for workers displaced by plant closures

This article traces the experience of countries reforming their vocational education and training policies and summarizes the lessons learned. It is based on a recent joint World Bank‐ILO study focussing on the obstacles to implementing change in vocational education and training systems in response to changing labor markets and innovative approaches to overcoming these constraints in 19 countries worldwide. It tracks the demand‐side pressures and supply‐side responses and highlights some critical issues, constraints and innovations in the reform of these systems. The main messages from this study are: matching instrument to target group is as important as picking the best delivery mode; the government’s role in facilitating the provision of information about vocational education and training has been relatively neglected; a vigorous private response has refuted claims of the reluctance of private providers to enter the field; and political will, not institutional capacity, is the main obstacle to comprehensive reform.

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There have been many initiatives to improve education outcomes in South Asia. Still, outcomes remain stubbornly resistant to improvements, at least when considered across the region. To collect and synthesize the insights about what actually works to improve learning and other education outcomes, this paper conducts a systematic review and metaanalysis of 29 education-focused impact evaluations from South Asia, establishing a standard that includes randomized control trials and quasi-experimental designs. It finds that while there are impacts from interventions that seek to increase the demand for education in households and communities, those targeting teachers or schools and thus the supply-side of the education sector are generally much more adept at improving learning outcomes. In addition, interventions that provide different actors with resources and those that incentivize behavioral changes show moderate but statistically significant impacts on student learning. A mix of input-and incentive-oriented interventions tailored to the specific conditions on the ground appears most promising for fostering education outcomes in South Asia.