INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK The Bahamas: challenges ahead for skills development, and some elements to move forward Laura Ripani IDB July, 2015 TRANSFORMATION Forum Nassau, The Bahamas

Agenda 1. Three key challenges 2. The skills gap 3. Ingredients for an integrated solution

1. Key challenges

I.Low productivity Source: Samuel, W (2013) based on World Economic Outlook Productivity Growth in The Caribbean, (average, percent)

II. High Youth Unemployment Source: Labour Force Survey, DOS. Note: years old.

III. Skills Gap There is a disconnection between Education and Training System and Employers

2. Skills Gap

Wages and Productivity Survey (2012) brings new evidence on:

Sample All business establishments in New Providence and Grand Bahama with 5 or more employees 722 firms

Main findings in four facts

Fact 1. Technical, basic and soft skills: most important criteria for hiring, more than formal education Source: 2012 Wage and Productivity Survey

Fact 2. Lack of specific skills, lack of experience and soft skills are the top three most cited as the greatest difficulty for hiring Source: 2012 Wage and Productivity Survey

Fact 3. Skills gaps are also perceived as one of the main barriers to productivity Source: 2012 Wage and Productivity Survey

Fact 4. Main reason for dismissal of staff: problems with behaviour, pointing to the lack of soft skills

Training in firms: how firms are investing in skills

50% of employers invested in training in the past 2 years, but not to the level they think is needed

Employers: need training for employees mainly to improve production

Employers: validated results on skills + highlighted need of more public-private integration

Next steps

National Development Plan Vision 2040: skills at the center of the construction of the country’s future

We need to unlock the country’s talent…

…meeting the employers’ needs

Collective efforts are needed to prevent a skills trap for youth Lack of attitude and skills for first job Fewer job opportunities Less on- the-job experience

3. Some ingredients

Skills demand identification Identify and systematically review private sector needs in terms of skill – Examples: sector skills councils, information systems.

Information to job seekers about what skills the labour market demands

On-the-job training strategies to align workers’ skills with specific skills demands

Soft skills training to improve attitudes and behaviour in the workplace

Integration of actors into a skills system to improve productivity Government Education & Training YouthWorkersPrivate Sector

Performance Management Results and impacts: learning and re-designing as needed

We should act now and together

Some questions for the debate today 1.What do you think are the main reasons why there is a skills shortage in The Bahamas? 2.What are the bottlenecks to developing these skills for specific sectors? 3.How can we improve the skills orientation to private sector needs? 4.Is more public-private integration feasible?

THANK YOU! Contact: Laura Ripani: Maria Victoria Fazio: