Skill Impact Bond Is Godsend For Women And People From Marginalised Sections

The Skill Impact Bond, floated in 2021, by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), has successfully trained more than 29,000 first-time job seekers from low-income families across 18 sectors in 24 states and union territories. The success rate has been quite rewarding in that around 73 per cent of them have joined jobs. This initiative aims to equip 50,000 young Indians by bridging the gap between skilling and employment, where women account for 60 per cent of the reach. The Skill Impact Bond has a retention rate of 57 per cent, which is being envisaged to go up to 60 per cent. Moving forward, the focus would be on employability, employment, income enhancement, and entrepreneurship. By leveraging digitalization and AI-driven innovations in healthcare, education, and beyond, SIB aligns with India’s $35 trillion economic vision for 2047, building a future-ready workforce and fuelling a more inclusive start-up ecosystem. Meanwhile, one should understand that these statistics do not give the true full picture. Interestingly, a key feature of the Skill Impact Bond is its strong gender-responsive approach. With 74 per cent of trainees being women from low-income backgrounds, many with limited education and no prior work experience, the programme has successfully engaged and retained these women in the workforce, which, in itself, is a good development.

Strategies such as family engagement, workplace familiarization, mobility support, and post-placement assistance have been instrumental in achieving these outcomes. Alongside National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the Skill Impact Bond’s coalition of partners comprises British Asian Trust, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), JSW Foundation, HSBC India, Dubai Cares, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Dalberg Advisors, and Oxford Policy Management. The skill training is delivered on-ground by Learnet Skills Limited, Magic Bus India Foundation, and PanIIT Alumni Reach For India Foundation, all selected for their capacity to innovate, scale, and reach diverse target groups. With a budget of $14.4 million, the Skill Impact Bond is designed to achieve measurable outcomes linked to job placement and retention.

This innovative financial model ensures accountability and effective use of resources aimed at enhancing employment opportunities for youth, particularly women. Quite significantly, an independent verification of the program reveals that 70 per cent of enrolled women and 81 per cent of enrolled men have secured jobs following their training. Job retention has also shown promising outcomes, with 56 per cent of women and 62 per cent of men retaining their jobs for at least three months. Even among those placed in jobs, 40 per cent of women and 66 per cent of men continued working for six out of twelve months. Notably, job retention rates for women have improved significantly, from 48 per cent in the first cohort to 61 per cent by the third cohort. As the programme continues to scale its operations and mainstreams its principles, it remains committed to transforming India’s skilling ecosystem through a focus on tangible outcomes and innovative practices.