India's informal economy accounts for more than half the country's GDP but is characterised by low levels of skills, and considerable barriers to skills development for workers. The Government of India has implemented ambitious policy initiatives for upskilling, designed to catalyse 'formalisation' of the economy, and improve productivity.…

Efforts to establish, test and analyse hypotheses regarding cross-country variations in women's economic status are hampered by the lack of a readily accessible and easily used information resource on the various dimensions of gender inequality. Addressing this gap, this paper introduces the Gender, Institutions and Development data base (GID)…

While the overall picture for gender equality is still gloomy, recent changes in family institutions in some countries provide an enlightening example. Developing countries are starting to reform cultural barriers to gender equality that limit their growth prospects. Morocco, Algeria, Egypt and some states of India are some examples of countries…

The Republic of Yemen has a very high number of working children, employed in a variety of occupations, ranging from street vending to guards on farms, and domestic labour. Including these children in formal education is a major challenge facing the Republic, which has one of the lowest rates of female participation in primary education in the…

The author discusses economic development and its effect on poor women in developing countries. She covers constraints to participation in training that affect women. Implications are presented. (CH)

This issue of the quarterly Education International focuses on vocational education and training (VET). The editorial, "Education and the Wealth of Nations" (Fred van Leeuwen), focuses on provision of quality education for all. "Education International's (EI's) First Joint Worldwide Action on Education Issues" (Elie Jouen) describes the Global…

This document contains 21 papers and an introduction on work force preparation in a global context. The following papers are included: "Introduction" (Johanna Lasonen); "Access of Girls and Women to Vocational Education: Implications for the Workplace in Swaziland" (Comfort B. S. Mndebele); "Intersectoral Approaches to…