Better skills data for smarter financing of education and training

Robust and integrated skills data are essential for effective policymaking, particularly in improving the allocation of public resources across education and training. Yet many governments face significant information gaps. Fragmented or underdeveloped data systems constrain the ability to assess programme effectiveness, prioritise spending, and target investments towards high-impact interventions. This paper examines how stronger skills data can support more evidence-based financing decisions. It introduces a framework grouping the main obstacles into four categories: institutional, governance and financing barriers; human-capital and analytical-capacity gaps; legal and regulatory constraints; and technical and interoperability challenges. By analysing these barriers and highlighting promising country practices, the paper provides a basis for identifying priorities and guiding reforms to strengthen skills data systems and improve investment in skills.