THE recent International Labour Organisation report on global work force, learning opportunities and skills for future points to a number of issues that have held Bangladesh back from harnessing demographic dividend. The report, The World of Work Report: Lifelong Learning and Skills for the Future, shows that Bangladesh’s expanding work force increasingly outpaces the economy’s capacity to generate jobs. While the labour force continues to grow rapidly, job creation and structured skills development remain sluggish. The data are unequivocal. Only 12 per cent of the working-age population were engaged in formal or non-formal education and training in 2025 despite 95.2 per cent relying on informal learning, which remains uncertified and, therefore, undervalued. This imbalance signals a systemic failure to translate demographic potential into productive employment. Even more concerning is the scale of unmet demand for training. About 48.5 per cent of respondents prioritised short-term technical courses while over half of young people aged 15–24 reported an urgent need for digital skills. The figures underscore a widening disconnect between labour market requirements and the education and training system.
What the report reveals is that without targeted investment in human capital, particularly in digital and technical domains, Bangladesh would continue to face unemployment and underemployment and limit its competitiveness in an increasingly knowledge-driven global economy. The inequities within the skills training programmes deepen this crisis. Access to training is largely determined by education, occupation and employment status. While 25.7 per cent of individuals with secondary education participate in learning activities, only 3.7 per cent of those without such education do so. Similarly, professionals and technicians report participation rates of 36.9 per cent and 33.5 per cent respectively, compared with a negligible 3.5 per cent among workers in elementary occupations. Formal sector workers are more than three times more likely to access structured training than their informal counterparts, suggesting a cycle of exclusion for the majority employed in the informal economy. The near-absence of work-based learning is another missed opportunity. Although 72 per cent of those who undertook apprenticeship or internship reported improved job performance, a staggering 93 per cent had not engaged in such programmes over three years. Compounding these challenges is the lack of formal recognition for informal learning, leaving millions of workers with uncertified and undervalued skills.
Addressing these structural gaps demands urgent, coordinated reform. The authorities need to invest in inclusive, life-long learning systems, expand access to short-term and digital training and establish mechanisms to certify informal skills. The authorities should also adapt policies to align training and skills with market demand while integrating technical, cognitive and socio-emotional competencies. Without such reforms, the country will fail to harness its demographic dividend for a sustainable and equitable growth.
