AN APPROACH TO IMPROVE PENETRATION OF SKILLS RECOGNITION AND VALIDATION IN INDIA.

Skill development and recognition should become a policy priority for India. A growing young population, soaring unemployment rates, higher informality in labour markets, and lukewarm sentiments for growth ahead - India has more reasons to invest in human capital development, also amidst the COVID-19outbreak, which has magnified workforce challenges. This paper aims to place the concept of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), a tool for skills validation, at the centre stage and highlight how this tool can contribute to reduce the skills mismatch in Indian labour markets. While discussing the challenges involved in awarding RPL certification, the paper concludes by providing recommendations for improving outreach and penetration of RPL in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]