Sosale, Shobhana

Person:
Sosale, Shobhana

Education Global Practice

Fields of Specialization

Education finance, Education policy, Development economics

Departments

Education Global Practice

Last updated: December 7, 2023

Biography

Shobhana Sosale is a senior education specialist in the South Asia Region of the World Bank Education Global Practice. She is global co-lead for the Education and Gender thematic area and is the climate change and education focal point for South Asia. She has more than 25 years of experience in education and skills development. She has published on education and related fields, analyzing topics linking political economy and cross-sectoral issues in education, technology, climate change, skills development, entrepreneurship, public-private partnerships, and finance. She has led the World Bank’s education engagement in more than 14 countries in East Asia, Europe and Central Asia, South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Middle East and North America. She also has academic teaching experience at the graduate and undergraduate levels. She holds graduate degrees in political economy and macroeconomics.

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Publication Search Results

Now showing 1 - 10 of 10

Engendering Access to STEM Education and Careers in South Asia
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-20) Sosale, Shobhana; Harrison, Graham Mark; Tognatta, Namrata; Nakata, Shiro; Gala, Priyal Mukesh; Brown, Sherrie; Holtz, Paul
Building a skilled and diverse science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce is crucial for economic development, cross-border trade, and social inclusion in South Asia. However, underrepresentation of girls and women in STEM education and careers remains a persistent issue. What kinds of macro and micro socioeconomic interventions are needed to increase girls’ and women’s access to and participation in STEM education and careers in South Asia?
Enhancing Skills in Sri Lanka for Inclusion, Recovery, and Resilience
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-12-07) Sosale, Shobhana; Hong, Seo Yeon; Subasinghe, Shalika; Herat, Hiran
Sri Lanka has confronted and is grappling with a number of exogenous shocks, including the devastating 2004 tsunami; the 2008 global recession; the COVID-19 global pandemic; and, more recently, the ongoing “triple crisis” (fuel, food, fiscal). The country is now at a crossroads. An ongoing process of strengthening skills and improving education will be crucial to Sri Lanka’s economic recovery. Sri Lanka is transitioning from a rural-based to a modern, urbanized economy, and better jobs are being created, especially in services. To remain globally competitive, the Sri Lankan workforce must gain the technical competencies and higher-order cognitive skills that meet the needs of local and foreign labor markets. As a result, Sri Lanka will need to transform its current skills development system and processes to align them to emerging jobs; improve their market relevance; and develop an effective, inclusive, and accessible education and training system for skilling, reskilling, and upskilling the stock and flow of the workforce. "Enhancing Skills in Sri Lanka for Inclusion, Recovery, and Resilience" addresses these urgent issues and provides recommendations for educators and policy makers.
Enhancing STEM Education and Careers in Sri Lanka
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-20) Subasinghe, Shalika; Sosale, Shobhana; Aturupane, Harsha; Holtz, Paul; O’Malley, Ann
In recent decades, the Sri Lankan government has introduced reforms aimed at enhancing education access and quality, as well as emphasizing the importance of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), which are crucial fields for economic development and social inclusion. “Advancing STEM Education and Careers in Sri Lanka” examines how access to STEM education can affect enrollments at various levels (lower, upper secondary, higher education, and technical and vocational training) and careers in the labor market. The report also analyzes STEM education status by gender at the central, provincial, and district levels, and it highlights factors that enable and hinder the achievement of desired outcomes. The report offers a wide range of interventions to boost student access and teacher training, including developing digital learning materials and technology-based tools to broaden service delivery, facilitate learning, and support an inclusive public education system. In addition, it proposes policy options at the central and provincial levels. The findings and recommendations can be used to guide policy and investments to achieve the country’s potential to expand human capital, foster inclusion, contribute to economic development and competitiveness, promote recovery from the economic crisis, and build resilience.
Skills, Human Capital, and Economic Development
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-05) Raju, Sudhakar; Sosale, Shobhana
This paper presents a skills index for developing countries in Asia as a first step toward developing a Global Skills Index. The Asian Skills Index is roughly modeled on the European Skills Index for Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. However, the Asian Skills Index is substantially more complicated to develop. In addition to data limitations, the Asian Skills Index incorporates several structural and institutional features of labor markets in Asian countries, such as vulnerable employment and unemployment among the highly educated, which are specific to Asian countries. In addition, the newly developed learning-adjusted years of schooling indicator plays an integral role in the Asian Skills Index. Using the k-means clustering algorithm, the paper identifies a comparable group of Asian developing countries for which it develops an index of the country’s skills system. While studies on human capital focus only on education, the Asian Skills Index is a more comprehensive construct since it goes beyond just education and skills development. By incorporating labor market conditions within which education and skills can thrive and be translated into productive output, a skills system provides crucial economic context for the human capital development process. Using the Asian Skills Index, the paper provides some economic estimates and policy recommendations.
Sri Lanka Human Capital Development: Realizing the Promise and Potential of Human Capital
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2021-08-13) Higashi, Hideki; Ebenezer, Roshini; Attygalle, Deepika; Sosale, Shobhana; Dey, Sangeeta; Wijesinghe, Rehana; Aturupane, Harsha
Human capital is a central determinant of economic well-being and social advancement in the modern world economy. The concept of human capital covers the knowledge, skills, nutrition, and health that people accumulate over their lives, enabling them to realize their potential as productive members of society. Because of the vital importance of human capital for economic growth, the World Bank has launched the Human Capital Project (HCP), which includes the Human Capital Index (HCI). The objective of the HCP is to accelerate human capital development around the world. The HCI is a cross-country metric designed to measure and forecast a country’s human capital. Sri Lanka is a lower-middle-income country seeking to become an upper-middle-income country. Developing human capital to a new and higher level will be central to achieving this development goal. After the country’s 26-year secessionist conflict ended in 2009, Sri Lanka’s economy enjoyed rapid growth at an average rate of almost 6 percent between 2010 and 2017, reflecting a peace dividend and a determined policy thrust toward reconstruction and growth. However, in more recent years there have been signs of a slowdown. The economy is transitioning from a predominantly rural economy to a more urbanized one. In the context of the HCP and the HCI, Sri Lanka Human Capital Development analyzes the main achievements and challenges of human capital development in this East Asia and Pacific island country in health and nutrition—including stunting—and in education—including the challenges posed by Sri Lankans’ low participation in higher education. The report concludes with a look at the importance of building a consensus among the public and other stakeholders to launch an ambitious human capital development program in Sri Lanka.
Integrating Early Childhood Care and Education in Sri Lanka: From Global Evidence to National Action
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2020-10-22) Warnasuriya, Renu; Sosale, Shobhana; Dey, Sangeeta
Changes in social and family structures, gender roles, and working environments have led some countries to introduce integrated centers for early childhood care and education (ECCE) for children ages zero to five years, combining the advantages of preschools and childcare centers. ECCE services are becoming increasingly important for countries as a support system for working parents. In countries such as Sri Lanka, where female participation in the labor force is low in comparison with international standards, providing affordable childcare services could also help more mothers to enter the labor market. Responding to the needs of employees, child development centers in the plantation areas in Sri Lanka are already providing integrated childcare services for children in this age group. The increasing demand for affordable childcare services and the growing recognition of the benefits of holistic early childhood development have brought ECCE to the forefront of Sri Lanka’s development agenda. Well-designed ECCE systems can improve the lives of children and families and provide significant advantages to national economies. Access to effective ECCE can equalize learning opportunities by improving school readiness and by putting children on a more equal footing at the primary school level. These early advantages have proved to have a lasting impact, affecting both educational and earning potential in the adult years. The significant income inequalities in countries such as Sri Lanka could be addressed through investment in effective ECCE programs, and enhanced understanding of the benefits and potential long-term impacts of ECCE could help governments tailor programs to ensure maximum return on investment. This study seeks to answer the following questions: Is it more effective to provide early childcare and education services separately or in an integrated manner? Under what conditions would the provision of separate care and education services be more effective? The study provides an analysis of the ECCE environment in Sri Lanka, with recommendations for improvement within the current context. The information presented in the study is a starting point to foster the improved understanding of a complex subject area involving multiple stakeholders.
Fostering Skills in Cameroon: Inclusive Workforce Development, Competitiveness, and Growth
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2016-05-03) Sosale, Shobhana; Majgaard, Kirsten
This report reaches conclusions and offers policy recommendations to answer these questions: What has been the trajectory of Cameroon’s economic growth? Which sectors have contributed to growth? What jobs are being created? What types of skills are being used in the sectors where the highest percentages of the population are employed? What are the demand and supply barriers to skills? Which policies and institutions are in play? Are they sufficient? What needs to or could be reformed? Cameroon has good prospects for moving to middle-income status. It can create a more dynamic, responsive workforce. But a new strategy is required. It can be done.This report proposes new directions and provides recommendations.
Mobilizing the Private Sector for Public Education : A View from the Trenches
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2007) Patrinos, Harry Anthony; Sosale, Shobhana
Historically, ensuring access to primary education has been seen as a predominantly public responsibility. However, governments are increasingly sharing this responsibility through a variety of subsidiary arrangements. Some governments are contracting services out to the private sector, to nongovernmental organizations, and even to other public agencies. Some societies are transferring responsibility for financing, providing, and regulating primary education to lower levels of government, and in some cases, to communities. In education policy, public-private partnerships play an important role in enhancing the supply and the quality of human capital. This book explores the burgeoning number of public-private partnerships in public education in different parts of the world. The partnerships differ in form and structure, in the extent of public and private participation, and in the forms of their engagement. The essays in this book are written mainly from the provider's perspective and offer valuable insights into the purpose, trend, and impact of public-private partnerships, and an understanding of the barriers they face.
Tools for Education : Policy Analysis
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2003) Mingat, Alain; Tan, Jee-Peng; Sosale, Shobhana
This hands-on, interactive guide to evaluating and revamping education policy is designed to help policymakers in low-income countries identify weakness and make the most efficient use of scarce education resources. Education specialist in the developed world will also find this guide to be an invaluable tool for analyzing priorities and arriving at cost-effective solutions. The out-growth of training workshops held at the World Bank, this book and CD-ROM present relevant policy problems and engage the user in a search for effective education-service delivery options. Users can, moreover, plug in their own data and apply the statistical models to the specific challenges of their own educational systems. Both a self-paced learning guide and a practical assessment tool, this publication will be of interest to policymakers, as well as education researches, teachers, and students.
Trends in Private Sector Development in World Bank Education Projects
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2000-09) Sosale, Shobhana
Emerging trends in education show the private sector to be playing an increasingly important role in financing and providing educational services in many countries. Private sector development has not arisen primarily through public policy design, but has of course been affected by the design, and limitations of public policy. The author traces trends in private sector development in eleven of seventy World Bank education projects in 1995-97, asking two questions: What has been the rationale for Bank lending in education? And, in countries where there is both privately financed, and publicly financed, and provided education, how has the Bank encouraged the private sector to thrive? The eleven country samples reveal that the Bank's interest in private sector development is basically in capacity-oriented privatization, to absorb excess demand for education. This is crucial to the Bank's general strategy for education lending: promoting access with equity, focusing on efficiency in resource allocation, promoting quality, and supporting capacity building. Absorbing excess demand tends to involve poorer families, usually much poorer than those that take advantage of other forms of privatized education. The Bank emphasizes capacity-oriented privatization, especially of teacher training for primary, and secondary schools, as well as institutional capacity building for tertiary, and vocational education. The underlying principle is that strengthening the private sector's role in non-compulsory education over time, will release public resources for the compulsory (primary) level. The private sector is emerging as a force governments, donors, and other technical assistance agencies cannot ignore. Often the term private sector encompasses households' out-of-pocket expenses, rather than describing for-profit, or not-for-profit (religious or otherwise) sectors. And lumpy investments, supporting both private, and public education, are the norm.