The report “Lifelong learning and skills for the future” is based on employee surveys, analysis of online job vacancies, institutional data and a review of 174 studies of what works in training.
Read this article in Norwegian on Arbeidsliv i Norden
The report shows that 34 per cent of so-called high-income countries spends less than 1 per cent of public education budgets on adult education, while that number rises to 63 per cent in low-income countries.
The numbers also show that only 16 per cent of people aged 15 to 64 say they have participated in structured training in the year before being interviewed, with little deviation between countries.
Among full-time permanent workers in formal firms, the participation rate is higher. Here, 51 per cent receive training from their employer.
One of the report’s key findings is that it is not enough to focus narrowly on technical skills.
Employers are increasingly looking for a combination of skills. Digital and green competencies are important, but they are often needed in combination with basic cognitive, socio-emotional and manual skills.
It is also interesting to note that AI-specific skills so far only make up a small proportion of the overall skills demand.
The demand for AI skills is expected to grow, but the ILO believes this result mirrors the fact that many workers use off-the-shelf AI tools that do not require specialist knowledge. Instead, they rely on basic competencies like digital skills, critical thinking and social skills.
