China - Rural Migrant Skills Development and Employment Project (Vol. 1 of 1 )

Page 1 PROJECT INFORMATION DOCUMENT (PID) CONCEPT STAGE Report No.: AB1605 Project Name Rural Migrant Skills Development and Employment Project Region EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC Sector Other social services (40%); Vocational training (40%); Adult literacy/non-formal education (20%) Project ID P085376 Borrower(s) CHINA Implementing Agency Ministry of Labor and Social Security Environment Category [ ] A [ ] B [X] C [ ] FI [ ] TBD (to be determined) Date PID Prepared November 18, 2006 Estimated Date of Appraisal Authorization July 20, 2007 Estimated Date of Board Approval November 28, 2007 1. Key development issues and rationale for Bank involvement Internal labor migration in China is occurring on an unprecedented scale with huge economic and social implications. Recent estimates of the number of rural migrants have ranged from 115 to 150 million and the number continues to rise. While the push and pull factors are characteristic of all modernizing economies, the traditional legal and institutional separation between the rural and urban realms makes the Chinese experience unique and the challenge enormous. The government recognized the crucial role of migration and is actively facilitating it through a range of policies and programs. A succession of State Council documents outlined the strategies and put forward opinions on how to guarantee the legal rights of migrant workers, improve their work environment, provide better employment services and training, solve social security problems, reduce barriers to mobility, and provide public services for migrants. National training programs have been instituted. Obstacles to the transfer of farmers to urban labor markets remain. Rural workers are relatively poorly educated and most do not have labor contracts. Quality training and employment services can help facilitate their access to urban labor markets and improve the quality of jobs they can get. However, the capacity of the governments to provide these services is limited. Private sector provision of these services is growing but cannot fully meet the substantial demand in a very short period of time, or reach the less advantageous groups. The proposed operation directly supports government objectives and policies. It would support specific investments to enhance skills development, employment services, and worker protection, as well as efforts in policy and institutional development. Activities would be carried out by the central government (MOLSS) and the local governments in Ningxia autonomous region, Shandong and Anhui Provinces. Bank