Training programmes for disadvantaged youth in Latin America: balance of public strategies in the last decade and recent trends

This paper summarizes Latin-American trends in recent policies and programs addressed to increase disadvantaged youth employability and employment. Revising the financial, institutional and learning arrangements of the programs,??linked or not with traditional Technical and Vocational Education and Training(TVET), it describes promising paths in interlinking social, educational andtraining policies; decentralization strategies and public-private partnershipsthat seem to work better.Although the policy approaches that have been particularly relevant for disadvantagedyouth to find decent jobs and to generate income are difficult todetermine, some practices seem to be more hopeful. Between them: promotinga closer bond with the private sector employer in order to add work insertionstrategies from the designing stage of the program; combining both technicaltraining and personal as well as social and livelihood skills; including on-the-joblearning (internship/placements) as a part of the training; ensuring young people'saccess to work insertion services and counseling, either on self-employment,micro-enterprises, or paid employment; advisory, coaching actions and accessto micro-credit for inexperienced small self-employed entrepreneurs, in firststages of business; linking different educational paths and learning environments(formal schooling, vocational training, workplace); improving local partnershipsthat link different types of institutions (educational, firms, local governments,NGOs) in a strategic plan of social and economic development.