As adults reach mid-career, they must balance competing personal and professional priorities. This chapter explores how education systems can help adults in mid-career to stay engaged as lifelong learners while balancing work, family and evolving labour-market demands. It examines national and regional strategies that seek to remove barriers to participation, link short learning to recognised qualifications, and harness digital innovation for flexible delivery. Drawing on OECD data from 28 education systems, the chapter analyses strategic choices of policy design, as well as how these support the will, skills and means of learners at this critical life moment, offering practical insights for policymakers.
Education Policy Outlook 2025
Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation
Abstract
Supporting learners during mid-career
Adults in mid-career (around ages 35-44) often face mounting workplace demands and personal responsibilities, yet their participation in formal and non-formal learning declines markedly compared with younger age groups. OECD data show that participation in formal and non-formal education among adults aged 35 to 44 has fallen in many countries over the past decade.
Policy interventions can help mid-career adults remain engaged and adaptable lifelong learners by aligning system-level design with individual motivations and constraints. The analysis of policy approaches from 28 education systems highlights some common trends shaping policy design in this age group to support their will, skills, and means:
Will: Strengthening motivation and agency through learner entitlements (e.g. France, Portugal); and actively promoting engagement in lifelong learning through equity measures that help all adults feel confident and included (e.g. Brazil, Estonia, Luxembourg).
Skills: Connecting learning pathways through modular and stackable qualifications (e.g. Norway, Poland, Sweden); Supporting employability and portability (e.g. Estonia, Norway); and building digital and transversal skills to participate effectively in technology-enabled learning (e.g. Estonia and Portugal).
Means: Promoting access and participation through predictable funding, guidance, and digital tools (e.g. Flemish-speaking Community (Belgium), Finland); and strengthening cross-sector partnerships to share costs, align training with labour-market needs and extend reach to small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) and non-standard workers (e.g. the Netherlands, Türkiye).
Recent efforts to support learning in mid-adulthood show promising developments. Many policies now target both foundational and transversal competencies, combining financial incentives, modular and digital learning formats, and career guidance with initiatives that strengthen learner motivation and agency. The emergence of learner entitlements, such as individual learning accounts and paid training leave, along with recognition of prior learning and portable qualifications, signals growing political commitment to lifelong learning. These measures suggest a shift toward more coherent and flexible systems that better align education and labour-market needs.
Despite this progress, challenges remain. Several initiatives emphasise participation and employability but efforts to enable adults to sustain engagement or tracking long-term outcomes could be further emphasised. Outreach to SMEs, the self-employed, and low-qualified adults remains limited, while information on implementation and evaluation is often scarce. Digitalisation has expanded opportunities but also introduced new risks around quality, access, and data governance. Moreover, investment in trainers, counsellors, and mentors, which are key actors in maintaining mid-career adults’ motivation and learner persistence high, remains uneven across systems.
Moving forward, governments can support learners’ agency at this life stage by connecting flexibility with recognised portable credentials, strengthening monitoring and evaluation, and expanding targeted outreach to under-represented groups. Coordinated investment in digital infrastructure, professional capacity, and learner support can help ensure that innovation translates into sustained engagement. Embedding these elements into broader employment and social strategies will enable mid-career adults to upskill continuously and navigate change with confidence.
Mid-career, typically around ages 35 to 44, is another critical moment in the lifelong learning journey. Adults at this stage must balance evolving workplace demands and personal responsibilities while adapting to career changes. However, they often lack the structured support of formal education systems available earlier in life. Although they have accumulated knowledge and experience, evidence shows that their participation in learning tends to decline with age.
Data from the 2024 Survey of Adults Skills (PIAAC) confirm this trend. Participation in formal and non-formal education among adults aged 35 to 44 has fallen in many countries over the past decade. Across the OECD, mid- to late-career adults (aged 35-54) participate in formal and non-formal job-related learning less often than early-career adults (aged 25-34), with only 43% reporting participation in adult learning within the past 12 months on average – a difference of 8 percentage points (OECD, 2025[1]). Participation in formal programmes remains limited among all adults (aged 25-65) and has fallen further, while non-formal job-related learning, though more common, also declined by around three percentage points to an average of 37% since 2012 (OECD, 2025[1]) (see Figure 4.1).
Difference in participation rates of adults aged 35–44 in formal and non-formal education between PIAAC cycles 1 (2012) and 2 (2024), by educational attainment
Note: Does not include adults who in PIAAC cycle 2 were only administered the doorstep interview due to a language barrier.
Source: OECD (2024[2]), Do Adults Have the Skills They Need to Thrive in a Changing World?: Survey of Adult Skills 2023, OECD Skills Studies, https://doi.org/10.1787/b263dc5d-en.
However, this downward trend is not universal. Gains have occurred in several countries. In the Flemish Community of Belgium, Ireland, Lithuania, and the United States, both adults with lower levels of education (secondary education or below) and with higher levels (post-secondary education) alike have tended to increase their engagement. Statistically significant growth in non-formal job-related learning has also occurred in the Flemish Community of Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Italy and England (United Kingdom) (OECD, 2024[2]).
Countries with high levels of non-formal learning, such as Finland, Norway and the United States, also show above-average participation in formal adult learning, which indicates that they have well-developed and accessible adult learning systems (OECD, 2025[1]).
Policies that strengthen adults’ will, skills, and means can prevent or reverse these declines. To support policymakers in this effort, this chapter analyses over 75 policy approaches from 28 education systems that target mid-career stage adults (ages 35 to 44) drawing on an Education Policy Outlook questionnaire and desk-based analysis of international evidence and policy approaches (Annex Table 4.A.1). It explores how countries can support adults through this stage marked by complex transitions in work, identity, and learning engagement. Building on this analysis, the chapter concludes with considerations for the future.
The World Economic Forum warns that evolving skill demands require global upskilling and reskilling: if the world’s workforce were represented by 100 people, 59 would need some form of training by 2030. Of these, employers expect 29 could be upskilled in their current roles, 19 retrained for new roles within their organisation, while 11 risk lacking the necessary training and facing uncertain employment prospects (World Economic Forum, 2025[3]). Policymakers therefore face the dual challenge of addressing both the motivations and capacities of individuals, and the broader capability of education and training systems.
At the individual level, a learner-centred approach can help shift systems from supply-driven models to those that empower individuals, supporting their agency and demand. This involves nurturing adults’ interest and ownership over their learning choices, while supporting their access to opportunities to enable them to acquire new skills, potentially for careers in different professions such as greener jobs (OECD, 2023[4]).
At the system level, policymakers must address the cost and time barriers that continue to exclude those most in need. Systems should evolve beyond reactive, compliance-oriented training to equip workers with transferable skills for future roles. This requires moving from fragmented, short-term solutions to coherent strategies that integrate sustainable funding, employer engagement and flexible delivery models (OECD, 2025[1]).
From international evidence, priorities emerge that could be useful for policymakers to consider, with both a focus on learners and the system.
Focus on learners
Placing learners at the centre is key; empowering them to decide what, how, where and when they learn. This contrasts with traditional workplace training, where access is typically tied to a specific job or employer need, and limited to certain learning environments. A learner-centred approach focuses on individuals’ professional development needs at different stages of their careers, whether in formal or informal settings (Cedefop and Kankaraš, 2022[5]; OECD, 2022[6]). Examples of such approaches include individual learning accounts (i.e. virtual accounts where individuals accumulate training rights over time). To avoid cost-shifting, these entitlements should complement, rather than substitute, employer responsibilities, with shared (public/employer) financing and options to train in paid time.
Expanding access and reducing barriers to training is also essential, especially for groups typically excluded from traditional funding mechanisms, such as the self-employed, gig economy workers, or adults who typically participate at lower rates (sometimes called ‘hard to reach’). Relevant policy approaches include financial incentives through tax and benefit systems, as well as comprehensive strategies that can address complex obstacles to participation in training more easily.
Flexible delivery models also matter, as they allow training to adapt to individuals’ diverse personal circumstances. Personalised training can be offered through, for example, digital platforms, including AI, new partnerships between sectors and institutions, or more modular and targeted design. This flexibility can accommodate diverse needs and aims to facilitate the creation of habits. For example, for individual learning accounts, it is important to design schemes that go beyond one-time support, creating platforms that individuals can draw on repeatedly (OECD, 2025[7]).
Focus on the system
At the same time, effective lifelong learning policies must ensure systemic coherence. This includes features like “stackability” and “portability”, which allow short learning opportunities to connect to recognised qualifications and move with learners as they change jobs or employment status. With OECD data showing that nearly 42% of non-formal job-related training lasts just a single day, it is key to connect these short learning opportunities to sustained, recognised qualifications (Schleicher, 2025[8]). This is increasingly important considering dynamic and uncertain labour-market trends where individuals rarely remain in one job for life (OECD, 2025[7]). Policy approaches to support this include micro-credentials and systems for recognising prior learning (RPL). These short courses and micro-credentials should be embedded within national qualification frameworks, with credit transfer and quality assurance to ensure portability and labour-market value.
Keeping pace with rapid technological change is also essential. The rise of generative AI and new related skill sets bring new opportunities for learning in formal, non-formal and informal settings. However, these advances also bring risks that need to be managed, such as regulatory non-compliance and unequal access to tools, potentially creating skill gaps.
Finally, building a cross-sectoral culture of lifelong learning is equally vital. Societies need to normalise upskilling and reskilling, raise aspirations and strengthen cross-sectoral buy-in and collaboration across employers, unions, and community organisations. This can be supported through mechanisms such as tri-partite agreements, which bring together key stakeholders to promote shared responsibility and action.
While these priorities focus on mid-career adults, they are also highly relevant to those approaching retirement. They offer valuable insights for designing flexible, inclusive and future-ready learning systems that support individuals throughout their working lives and beyond.
The examples collected for this report show close alignment between international lifelong-learning priorities and many of the policy efforts underway in participating countries and economies for mid-career adults. However, the approaches reviewed in this chapter indicate that countries prioritise will, skills and means to varying degrees in their strategies to support this group, typically focusing on the elements they can influence most directly.
To help policymakers strengthen their own approaches, this chapter explores these initiatives, first by looking into overall strategic design choices for these policies (e.g. mechanisms, scope, actors, resources, and tools) to provide a system-level view of how different design choices and delivery arrangements shape implementation capacity. It then groups initiatives by policy aims under will, skills and means, allowing policymakers to see how different strategies aim to motivate adults, develop relevant competencies, and expand accessible learning opportunities, and where stronger coordination across these dimensions could make lifelong-learning systems more coherent and effective. These elements are summarised in Infographic 4.1.
Most common approaches identified according to policy aim (selected categories)
Note: See Annex 4.A for a more complete view on the policies included in this chapter.
Source: Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation.
Strategic design choices in lifelong learning policies for mid-career adults
Across the policy initiatives supporting lifelong learning at mid-career collected for this report, most strategies prioritise flexibility and autonomy to help adults balance work, family and reskilling needs. The approaches vary in scope: some aim to maximise coverage, while others focus on engaging groups at risk of exclusion. Implementation models also differ. Certain systems rely on tripartite or sectoral agreements to strengthen labour-market relevance and share costs, while others are primarily government-led.
Digitalisation is embedded in many policies, although only a minority are specifically designed around digital transformation. A small but growing set of approaches is also beginning to test AI-enabled delivery, seeking to combine personalisation with safeguards for data use and equity. This section describes some key patterns across the components of the policies analysed.
Aims
Aims refer to the main objectives that a policy pursues to support learners in mid-career. Many of the policies analysed share a core ambition: removing obstacles for adult participation by making opportunities more flexible, portable and learner-centred.
Taken together, the aims identified in this chapter for mid-career adults reflect a system level push for flexibility on both the demand and supply sides. This includes entitlements to empower learners; recognition to make learning count; targeted routes for those most at risk of exclusion; sustained incentives; and partnership-based governance. The policy challenge is to combine these aims coherently so that participation translates into recognised, portable skills and better labour-market outcomes.
Mechanisms and actions
Achieving these aims requires translating ambition into operational mechanisms, which are the policy channels through which lifelong learning strategies take shape, with concrete actions. Across all aims, the alignment between design and implementation determines effectiveness. Where mechanisms are backed by sustained actions, policies are more likely to scale and generate long-term social and economic returns; where gaps exist, initiatives risk remaining fragmented or symbolic.
Four complementary building blocks emerge:
Financial support. Instruments such as vouchers, subsidies, tax incentives or paid training leave remain baseline enablers, helping to reduce cost and time barriers. Targeted schemes, such as Luxembourg’s co-financing scheme for continuous training provides training opportunities to self-employed and employees that may not necessarily be in line with current employment, thus offering flexibility beyond the developmental strategy of the company. By contrast, broader incentives might be easier to administer, although countries implementing similar mechanisms need to remain cautious to avoid reinforcing inequalities if uptake remains concentrated among those who would have trained anyway.
Structural flexibility. Many systems are investing in mechanisms that bridge education, training and work, to make learning more portable and modular. Examples include Portugal’s Qualifica Centres and Estonia’s recognition of prior learning system (VÕTA), which link short courses to nationally recognised qualifications. Several countries, such as France, Lithuania, and the Slovak Republic are also advancing individual learning accounts to increase autonomy, while requiring strong regulatory oversight to ensure quality and prevent fragmentation.
Engagement support. Guidance, outreach and user-friendly digital portals are increasingly recognised as critical for helping adults navigate opportunities and sustain motivation. Sweden’s National Agency for Higher Vocational Education offers online resources, while campaigns such as Estonia’s “Back to School Again” use storytelling and social media to make adult learning more visible and aspirational.
Monitoring and evaluation. More systems are embedding evaluation and feedback structures to steer investment and improve accountability. For example, the French Community of Belgium’s system review (Contract 2035) shows how periodic stocktaking can guide system improvement.
Governance models vary significantly. Some countries, such as Chile and Thailand, rely on centralised coordination approaches to ensure coherence and scale, while others, including Poland and Türkiye, partnership-based models to mobilise sectoral councils or tripartite agreements to align training with labour-market needs. Both models can be effective, provided that national frameworks prevent fragmentation and ensure accountability.
The effectiveness of mid-career lifelong-learning reforms depends less on the number of initiatives and more on how well their underlying mechanisms work together. Countries are using four main policy channels in the initiatives analysed for mid-career adults: financial support, structural flexibility, engagement support, and monitoring and evaluation. However, their impact will depend greatly on how they can ensure quality assurance, coordination and follow-through. Aligning these mechanisms within coherent governance frameworks can turn promising measures into more lasting system capacity.
Scope and timeline
For policies targeting adults in mid-career, scope (who is covered) and the timeline (how long the policy runs) are tightly connected design choices. Most approaches retain national coverage, which can provide visibility, coherence and legitimacy, acting as the “front door” to adult learning. However, governments rarely rely on national reach alone. Many often combine universal systems with sectoral or employee-based routes to align training with labour-market needs, while overlaying equity measures to reach under-represented groups (OECD, 2019[9]; Vincent Langley, 2024[10]).
Scope choices strongly influence duration. Broad national or universal schemes, such as those in Austria, China, Norway, Portugal and Slovenia, tend to be permanent or multi-year, reflecting the need for stability and sustained financing. However, stability does not necessarily mean rigidity: well-established instruments can evolve over time, such as in Sweden’s Higher Vocational Education system (see Box 4.1). Similarly, Luxembourg’s Skillsbridges programme offers training programmes selected based on recent labour-market analyses of identified growth sectors and labour-market shortages, and this offer is regularly updated. It is open to any adult, regardless of age, gender, employment status, origin, country of residence, or initial qualification, while preserving system continuity.
Sweden has a form of tertiary-level education that keeps qualification structures stable, while adapting programmes and providers to evolving labour-market needs. Programmes are co-designed and co-financed by education providers and labour-market actors to enhance relevance and responsiveness. Learners can earn Higher Vocational Education Diplomas at levels 5 and 6 of the Swedish Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning (SeQF), or take shorter courses introduced in 2020, for targeted reskilling and upskilling. These courses, which do not lead to full qualifications, are highly adaptable in delivery mode (campus, distance, or remote) and study pace (full-time or part-time), to make them accessible to working adults. In 2024, 87 225 students were enrolled in Higher Vocational Programs and 19 700 individuals in shorter courses. The system is dynamic, with programmes evolving over time, and quality reviews confirming high standards and effective responsiveness to areas for improvement.
Source: Sweden’s response to the Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation https://www.myh.se/in-english; https://assets.myh.se/docs/publikationer/rapporter/kvalitetsgranskningsrapport2024.pdf (accessed on 1st September 2025).
In contrast, sectoral or employee-based initiatives frequently operate on shorter cycles, which allows faster adjustment to changing labour-market demand but can create “stop–start” effects. For instance, Austria and the Netherlands run annual training funds negotiated with social partners. Policies can also extend eligibility to the self-employed – such as in Luxembourg, where salary costs for training days taken can also be reimboursed after the training is taken, subject to prior approval.
Phased or regional roll-outs help balance experimentation and scale, enabling systems to build evidence and political support before national expansion. However, a key policy challenge for these is finding the right balance between stability and adaptability, so that adults can benefit from predictable opportunities while retaining enough flexibility to respond to emerging economic and technological change, or to simply balance their need for learning with personal responsibilities.
Designing the scope and timeline of mid-career learning policies involves balancing stability with adaptability. Broad national schemes provide predictability and trust, while targeted or time-bound initiatives allow innovation and responsiveness but risk discontinuity if not institutionalised. Systems that connect both approaches, for example, using pilots to inform long-term frameworks, are best placed to ensure sustained participation and lasting system learning.
Range of actors typically involved
Lifelong-learning policies for mid-career adults typically mobilise a wide group of actors whose roles vary depending on governance traditions and system maturity.
Government ministries and agencies, most often from education, labour and social affairs, are key actors that provide leadership, coordination, and funding, as in Estonia, Portugal and Thailand. In more decentralised systems, like the Flemish Community of Belgium, Sweden, and Brazil, regions and municipalities have a stronger role in implementation.
Employers and social partners play a central role in many of the policies reported, particularly in keeping training aligned with labour-market needs and, in some cases, sharing costs. In the Netherlands, the Sector Plans (Sectorplannen) are co-funded by national government and sectoral stakeholders such as employers and unions, with sector-level coordination structures to plan and deliver training. Poland’s national framework for micro-credentials (see Box 4.2) similarly illustrates how collaboration between ministries, research institutions, employer organisations and trade unions can support innovation and broad stakeholder engagement. Schemes in countries such as Austria and Germany also require close involvement from employers and public employment services, for instance through employer agreement to paid educational leave or company-level skills development plans. According to national submissions, social-dialogue and partnership structures in systems such as the Netherlands and Portugal remain important governance channels for giving workers a voice in adult-learning strategies and sharing responsibility for workforce development.
Education and training providers (including universities, vocational schools and private centres) translate strategies into practice by diversifying formats and extending access. In Estonia, providers such as universities, vocational education and training (VET) schools and private institutions deliver VÕTI and state-commissioned short courses in modular, online, hybrid and in-person formats tailored to working adults. In Slovenia, a national network of public adult education centres expands territorial coverage and delivers both on-site and remote learning opportunities. Austria uses its adult education centres and higher education institutions to provide modular courses (Level Up) and recognised learning pathways supported by Public Employment Service (AMS) guidance and approval under Paid Educational Leave. Public Employment Services and career counsellors also play a central role in connecting adults to relevant opportunities in Germany, where the Federal Employment Agency supports both funding and referral for continuing training programmes.
Civil society and community organisations also help widen participation, especially among adults who are furthest from learning. In Brazil, NGOs involved in the Thousand Women Programme and, in Iceland, local associations supporting adult education initiatives, have demonstrated how outreach partnerships can build trust and inclusion.
Across countries, employers remain the dominant sponsors of adult learning, with over half of adults who changed jobs in the past three years reporting that their training was funded or supported by their workplace (OECD, 2025[1]) (see Figure 4.2). This reinforces the importance of both partnerships with employers and portability: skills acquired at work must retain value beyond a single employer to enhance adults’ mobility and resilience in changing labour markets.
Percentage of 35–44-year-olds whose training was funded by each type of sponsor
Note: Financial support is defined as covering some or all of the expenses for learning, including tuition fees, course materials, travel, accommodation and so forth.
Source: (2024[2]), Do Adults Have the Skills They Need to Thrive in a Changing World?: Survey of Adult Skills 2023, OECD Skills Studies, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/b263dc5d-en.
Lifelong-learning policies for mid-career adults rely on a wide and evolving network of actors. In the examples collected, governments usually provide leadership and coherence, while employers unions and education providers ensure relevance and delivery. Public Employment Services and community organisations can also expand access and engagement, particularly for under-represented groups. Strong governance depends on balancing national coordination with diversified partnerships so that learning opportunities remain both responsive to labour market and social needs and accessible to all adults.
The implementation of micro-credentials in 2021 was a collaborative effort involving a wide range of stakeholders. Ministerial guidelines were developed with input from the Ministry of Labour, higher education institutions, ENIC-NARIC, vocational education and training providers, research institutes, employer organisations, and craft representatives. The ongoing project, led by IBE-PIB, is supported by an advisory group that includes representatives from ministries (including digital affairs and labour), IT companies, trade unions, and employer organisations. At the practical level, piloting and testing activities have engaged both large and small companies, as well as traditional universities and regional higher education institutions, ensuring broad participation across sectors.
Source: Poland’s response to the Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation https://microcredentials.pl/en/about-the-project/ (accessed on 1st September 2025).
Digital and blended models
Digital and blended learning models are now a mainstream feature of lifelong-learning systems. Many countries use them to expand flexibility and access for mid-career adults while maintaining attention to equity and quality. Most combine online provision with in-person or workplace formats, reflecting the view that digitalisation is a complement – not a replacement – for human interaction in learning (see Figure 4.3).
Across systems, national online platforms are becoming central gateways for adult learning, offering searchable training catalogues, digital enrolment and tools that can support modular or flexible learning. In Estonia, for example, adults can explore opportunities through national digital channels such as the Jälle kooli website (see Box 4.3) and the digital systems linked to the Education Strategy and Lifelong Learning Strategy (e.g. EHIS, ÕIS, Tahvel). Portugal similarly uses national digital portals managed by IEFP – such as the online platforms supporting Cheque-Formação, Cheque-Formação + Digital, Trainer + Digital and Líder + Digital – which allow adults to browse approved providers, register for courses and access digital self-assessment or learning materials. In Luxembourg, digital catalogues provided through the National Institute for the Development of Continuing Vocational Training INFPC and the MyGuichet application system are complemented by personalised support from counsellors to guide learners toward relevant, accredited options.
From Less Digital to More Digital
Source: Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation.
Several countries are also developing digital credentials, e-portfolios and data systems that enhance portability, transparency and personalisation. Poland’s Integrated Qualifications Register (ZRK) and its Odznaka+ micro-credential application provide digital repositories, standardised learning outcomes and tools to issue and store badges aligned with national and EU frameworks. Thailand’s Credit Bank initiative builds a national central platform to record credits, validate experiential learning, and support e-portfolios that document learning across education, work and community settings. Estonia likewise embeds digital recognition tools within its VÕTA system (e.g. digital portfolios in ÕIS and Tahvel), enabling adults to store evidence and transfer credit across institutions. China is expanding online platforms and intelligent learning systems as part of its reforms in continuing and non-degree education, using digital resource libraries, online course platforms and data-driven monitoring tools to tailor and track learning.
The Lifelong Learning Strategy 2020 made a significant investment in digital tools and platforms, but also in face-to-face guidance, mentoring, and traditional classroom formats. Its successor, the Education Strategy 2021-2035, which sets out key educational goals for the next 15 years, combines the support of digital learning platforms, and the use of AI tools for guidance and progress tracking, alongside classroom-based and work-based formats.
Aligned with this strategy is the Jälle kooli [Back to school again] (n.d.). This adult learning campaign encourages adults of all ages to reskill and upskill. At its core is a new adult learning information website and strong social media presence. The website aims to help adults explore how to engage in learning opportunities at adult gymnasiums, vocational schools, higher education institutions and in-service training. Interactive maps also help them locate learning opportunities available nearby. In addition, videos, inspirational stories, and interviews with employers seek to inspire individuals to undertake adult learning. Radio, billboards, and in-person promotional events are other types of approaches used.
Source: Estonia’s response to the Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation.
Hybrid ecosystems with employer/education partnerships have also been functioning, with co-designed programmes that combine online learning, workplace practice, and in-person workshops, as seen in the Netherlands, Sweden and Luxembourg. These models recognise that digitalisation alone can exclude some groups, so blended designs are being used to maintain inclusiveness and quality. Educators and mentors remain essential in these systems; they ensure that digital content is reinforced through guidance and interaction.
At the same time, traditional classroom and workplace training remain important, particularly in contexts where digital infrastructure is limited or where hands-on practice is critical, such as in Brazil or Türkiye. This combination of formats helps balance innovation with accessibility and learning quality.
Digital and blended learning have become integral to adult learning systems, offering greater flexibility, scale and personalisation. However, countries recognise that technology alone cannot guarantee equity or quality. The most effective strategies combine digital platforms with human guidance, mentoring and workplace learning, creating blended ecosystems where innovation strengthens – not substitutes – the personal support that sustains motivation and inclusion (EAEA, 2025[11]).
Resources required
Countries mobilise a diverse mix of resources to implement lifelong learning policies for mid-career adults. These include funding, infrastructure, and human resources, which together determine whether policies can move from design to sustainable delivery.
Funding remains the most visible and commonly referenced input, providing the financial backbone for implementation. Countries combine national budgets, EU structural funds, and targeted grant or voucher schemes to lower both direct and indirect costs of participation. Austria’s Level Up and paid educational leave provide free courses and income support; Estonia’s VÕTI courses, VÕTA framework and State-Commissioned Short Courses are publicly funded and free of charge for eligible adults; Luxembourg reimburses part of the cost of company-organised training; and Portugal offers multiple voucher programmes (Cheque-Formação, Cheque-Formação + Digital) alongside subsidised digital and leadership training for trainers and managers. Meanwhile, Flemish training vouchers, training leave and training credit have potential to reduce financial and time barriers for employed workers. Together, these mechanisms can broaden access, particularly for low-qualified adults and those needing flexible, short-cycle learning.
Infrastructure investments support both physical and digital access to learning. Many systems rely on extensive networks of adult education centres, vocational institutions and regional learning hubs – such as Austria’s adult education centres, the Flemish Centres for Adult Education (CVO)/ Centres for Adult Basic Education (CBE), Portugal’s Qualifica Centres, Sweden’s municipal adult education and higher vocational education landscape, and Brazil’s national network for teacher and adult education programmes. Parallel digital investments further expand accessibility: Estonia has built national digital registries (EHIS), e-learning platforms and online portfolio tools; Portugal uses national digital learning environments for its trainer and voucher programmes; Thailand’s adult learning ecosystem includes nationwide digital portals; and China has invested heavily in online learning platforms, intelligent management systems and blended teaching formats. These infrastructures can make it easier for adults to access modular, flexible learning while maintaining in-person provision where practical and foundational skills require it.
Human resources refer to the expertise and capacity required to deliver and manage learning, but remains a less visible but equally vital component. Germany and Portugal explicitly pair digital initiatives with staff upskilling (see Box 4.4), to help educators and counsellors adapt to new teaching formats. Austria and Lithuania rely heavily on Public Employment Services (PES) counsellors to guide learners, which highlights the continued importance of personal support and professional guidance in connecting adults to training opportunities.
Together, these examples show that building sustainable lifelong-learning systems requires not only financial investment but also the right infrastructure and skilled people to support implementation.
Germany’s Act to Strengthen the Promotion of Vocational Training and Skills (Gesetz zur Stärkung der Aus- und Weiterbildungsförderung), in force since April 2024, aims to prepare the workforce for changing skill demands arising from technological and structural transformation. The measure is publicly funded through the Federal Employment Agency, which reimburses part of workers’ wages and training fees, depending on company size and the learner’s profile. The funding helps companies in providing continuing vocational training to their employees.
Under Section 82 of Book III of the Social Code, the programme includes subsidies for training-course costs and wage compensation for working hours lost due to training. Employees may also be reimbursed for additional expenses, such as travel or childcare.
Training can be delivered in-person, online, or through blended formats, motivating both employers and workers to invest proactively in upskilling.
The Vocational Validation and Digitalisation Act (Berufsvalidierungs- und Digitalisierungsgesetz – BVaDiG, 2024), passed in 2024 and implemented in 2025, aims to further digitalise and de-bureaucratise vocational training. Additionally, the Act facilitates the recognition of skills acquired through work experience without a formal qualification. The law explicitly aims to utilise all available skills in the German labour market, particularly those of young people without formal qualifications but with professional experience. The Act thus intends to increase both acquiring non-formal and formal qualifications and it further provides a point of connection to formal further education and training.
Source: Germany’s response to the Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation https://www.levelup-erwachsenenbildung.at/start; https://www.levelup-erwachsenenbildung.at/monitoring/monitoringberichte (accessed on 1st September 2025).
Resources for lifelong learning extend well beyond financial inputs. Effective implementation depends on coordinated investments in funding, infrastructure, technology and skilled personnel. At the same time, systems differ in their funding models. Some lean on public subsidies and entitlements, to give learners direct purchasing power. Others rely more on levy funds and employer co-financing, reflecting traditions of social partnership and collective bargaining.
Tools and resources generated
To implement lifelong-learning policies for mid-career adults, countries are developing a wide variety of practical tools and resources. These range from curricula and diagnostic instruments to portals, guidelines and outreach materials. Together, they help translate broad policy aims into everyday learning opportunities and build institutional capacity. Five broad groups emerge:
Curricula and training materials. Many systems are updating adult learning content to make it more flexible and relevant. Austria’s Level Up programme has developed diagnostic tools, pedagogical resources and digital learning materials tailored to adult learners. Estonia has produced extensive training curricula and materials through initiatives such as the VÕTI programme and State-Commissioned Short Courses, which include sector-specific course packages aligned with labour-market needs. In Norway, the Skills Plus Work programme provides job-related learning materials and national standards for basic skills adapted to workplace contexts. The Flemish Community of Belgium’s Centres for Adult Education (CVOs) and Centres for Adult Basic Education (CBEs) use fully modular programmes and have developed curricular frameworks, modular course guides and RPL tools to support adult learners and Norway.
Guidelines and quality frameworks. Countries such as Slovenia have developed national guidance materials, including diagnostic tools, manuals and toolkits, to strengthen the quality and coherence of adult education provision. Poland has introduced detailed qualification standards and quality assurance procedures within its Integrated Qualifications Registry and micro-credential initiatives, helping ensure that new credentials meet consistent criteria and can be integrated into national frameworks.
Digital platforms and portals, or blended courses. Online tools are now central to expanding visibility and access. Portugal’s suite of digital learning tools supports learners, trainers and institutional leaders in strengthening digital skills (see Box 4.5), while Lithuania’s Kursuok platform and Latvia’s Stars portal seek to link individuals’ learning accounts to a national course catalogue. Thailand’s Credit Bank initiative similarly enables online recording and transfer of learning credits.
Diagnostic and assessment tools. These help adults identify gaps and gain recognition for existing competencies. Austria uses literacy diagnostics and dashboards to guide adult education provision, Estonia’s VÕTA system provides national templates and rubrics for recognising prior learning, and Luxembourg employs digital reporting and evaluation templates to monitor progress.
Awareness and outreach materials. Campaigns manuals and information packs remain essential for motivating adults to re-engage in learning. Estonia’s Back to School Again campaign uses social media and learner stories to normalise participation, Brazil’s Thousand Women Programme provides inclusive training materials for women in vulnerable situations, and the Netherlands has developed workplace toolkits to support engagement through regional pilots.
Taken together, these tools indicate that countries are approaching adult-learning implementation in complementary ways, combining digital, pedagogical and motivational resources to support participation, quality and equity.
Countries are investing in diverse tools to turn strategy into practice, from digital platforms and modular curricula to diagnostic and outreach resources. Each supports a different aim: access tools seek to increase visibility (e.g. campaigns, portals), recognition tools to enhance employability (e.g. diagnostics, curricula), and outreach tools to foster inclusion. The coherence of these choices is encouraging, but many remain pilot based. Without stronger integration into recognition frameworks and funding schemes, their long-term impact may be limited.
Efforts undertaken by Portugal to support the acquisition of new skills include specific sets of tools targeting three different types of actors:
In connection with the Training Voucher + Digital (Cheque-Formação + Digital) (2015), which is a form of direct financing of training accessible to any person regardless of employment status, available tools for them include digital self-assessment quizzes, registration manuals, and lists of certified courses by region.
Targeting persons with higher levels of responsibility and varying levels of digital skills, the Leader + Digital (Líder + Digital) (2022) supports them with digital leadership case studies, scenario-based simulations, and self-assessment frameworks.
Finally, the Trainer + Digital (Formador + Digital) (2025) focuses on enhancing trainers’ digital skills and qualifications, using tools such as digital pedagogy toolkits, reusable learning objects, trainer self-assessment instruments, and online communities of practice.
Source: Portugal’s response to the Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation
Building on this overview of how countries design and resource their lifelong-learning strategies, the following sections examine how these components come together within specific policy aims. Organised around the three lifelong-learning dimensions (will, skills and means) they illustrate how different systems prioritise and connect these aims to support mid-career adults’ sustained engagement and development throughout working life.
Fostering will for lifelong learning
Policies that strengthen adults’ motivation and agency are essential to sustaining learning beyond early and mid-career stages. However, compared to skills and means, the will dimension (i.e. attitudes such as persistence, curiosity or agency) tends to be less systematically addressed. Evidence from the Education Policy Outlook suggests that while most policies target access or employability, a smaller number explicitly focus on nurturing adults’ curiosity, confidence and self-direction as learners.
Encouragingly, several countries are beginning to integrate these motivational aims within wider lifelong-learning frameworks, combining outreach, autonomy and inclusion measures. Some systems use campaigns and outreach to normalise adult learning, such as Estonia’s “Back to School Again” and Brazil’s Thousand Women Programme. France’s Personal Training Account promotes learner agency by giving every worker an individual training credit and allowing them to choose and manage their own learning (see Box 4.6). In the French Community of Belgium, pedagogical, and psychosocial individualised student support or adult learners complements this focus on motivation.
Across systems, two broad approaches emerge for fostering adults’ will to learn: giving learners agency through personal entitlements, and increasing inclusion and equity to engage under-represented groups. Together, these approaches seek to shift systems from a supply-driven model to one that empowers individuals to take ownership of their learning choices.
Strengthening learners’ motivation and agency: Learner entitlements
Learner agency and entitlements approaches seek to empower adults to decide when, how and what they learn. Although still less common, they are expanding across systems and align with emerging international evidence emphasising autonomy and ownership. For policymakers, these approaches are a way to shift from supply-driven to demand-driven lifelong learning systems (OECD, 2025[7]).
Mechanisms and actions: Individual learning accounts and similar entitlements, such as France’s Personal Training Account (CPF), Portugal’s approaches under +Digital, and the Slovak Republic’s and Luxembourg’s efforts to extend access, give adults direct purchasing power to pursue training aligned with their own needs. Some systems explicitly extend eligibility to non-standard workers, including the self-employed (e.g. Luxembourg, Slovak Republic), thereby widening who is recognised and supported by the system. Digital platforms like France’s CPF app seek to make options transparent, helping adults navigate their choices and act on their autonomy.
Scope and timeline: Entitlement schemes tend to have a broad or universal reach. France’s CPF, for instance, covers all workers and jobseekers and is portable across jobs and employment status, while Portugal’s digital entitlements are not tied to a specific employer. These measures are generally permanent and statutory, signalling predictability and trust in the system.
Main actors typically involved: National ministries of labour and education lead policy design, funding rules and regulation. Public agencies and national skills bodies administer accounts, validate eligible training offers, and monitor misuse or low-quality provision. Social partners, such as in Luxembourg, contribute to defining eligible training and pushing for inclusion of categories such as the self-employed.
Resources required: Stable, predictable funding is essential. In France, each adult receives €500 annually (up to a ceiling), creating a visible, personal incentive to participate. Sustaining such schemes also demands strong administrative capacity for quality assurance and fraud prevention, as well as guidance professionals to ensure autonomy translates into meaningful choices.
Tools and resources generated: Digital platforms and apps (as in France’s CPF) seek to allow adults to view, select and enrol in approved training directly, without having to negotiate through their employer. Complementary information campaigns and catalogues further promote reskilling and upskilling as normal, self-directed actions, to reinforce adults’ confidence and sense of agency.
Learner entitlements seek to make motivation actionable by giving adults purchasing power, visibility over options and procedural autonomy. The policy challenge is to pair this autonomy with safeguards: quality control, guidance and inclusion of non-standard workers. Without these, entitlements risk reinforcing advantage for those who are already confident and informed.
Actively promoting engagement in lifelong learning, including through targeted equity measures
Equity and inclusion aims place a strong emphasis on will to learn by working directly on motivation, confidence and perceived belonging in learning. These approaches focus on adults who have traditionally been under-represented in training – those with low prior qualifications, face insecurity at work, or face broader social vulnerability.
Examples from participating systems show how outreach and local engagement can make learning feel both relevant and attainable. Brazil’s Thousand Women Programme supports women in vulnerable situations to rebuild confidence, employability and a sense of agency through professional and human-rights training. Estonia’s Back to School Again campaign uses storytelling and social proof to make adult learning visible and aspirational. In Luxembourg, outreach efforts target SMEs, low-qualified adults and the self-employed to ensure that they are aware that they are not only eligible for training, but feel entitled to use it.
These targeted initiatives often complement universal measures by focusing on specific groups or regions where disengagement is highest. Typical target groups in the examples analysed include low-qualified adults, women in vulnerable contexts, migrants, SMEs and the self-employed.
Mechanisms and actions: Outreach campaigns and visibility drives, such as those in Estonia and Brazil, aim to reduce stigma, raise aspirations, and replace the message “training is not for me” with “this is for people like me.” Local learning centres and regional hubs in the Flemish Community of Belgium, Luxembourg and Brazil seek to bring opportunities closer to adults’ daily lives, offering flexible formats that fit around work and care responsibilities. Psychosocial and pedagogical support, as seen in the French Community of Belgium, also addresses confidence and well-being, which are often decisive for persistence.
Scope and timeline: These measures are typically selective, focusing on particular groups or territories to concentrate resources where need is greatest. Many begin as pilots or phased roll-outs, which supports adaptation and innovation but also risks discontinuity if not institutionalised or backed by stable funding.
Main actors typically involved: Ministries and agencies responsible for employment, social affairs and education set the overall strategy, while regional and municipal bodies lead implementation. Civil society organisations and community actors (such as in Brazil) can play a motivational role, building trust and tailoring outreach to cultural and social realities. Public Employment Services (PES) and guidance counsellors act as connectors, reaching adults who may not identify as “learners” and helping them navigate opportunities.
Resources required: Targeted subsidies, vouchers or scholarships can help lower immediate cost barriers for under-represented learners. Physical infrastructure such as regional training hubs or local learning centres is also being used to reach those who might not engage with purely digital provision. Human resources are therefore essential: outreach staff, counsellors and mentors are often the difference between awareness and actual uptake, but countries report that this capacity is uneven and sometimes underfunded.
Tools and resources generated: Tailored communication materials and outreach kits, such as those in Luxembourg and Brazil, help raise visibility among specific groups. Campaigns like Estonia’s “Back to School Again” showcase relatable learner stories to inspire participation, while practical navigation tools help adults take their first steps back into learning with confidence.
France’s Personal Training Account (Compte Personnel de Formation – CPF) provides a comprehensive approach to strengthen learner will, develop relevant skills, and ensure access to means. Introduced in 2015 and reformed in 2019, the CPF provides every worker and jobseeker with an individual entitlement to lifelong learning that can be used throughout their career, including during periods of unemployment.
It promotes intrinsic motivation, self-directed learning, and a culture of continuous development, by allowing individuals to choose and manage their own training through a digital platform and mobile app. By enabling adults to pursue learning that aligns with their personal and professional goals, it fosters autonomy and metacognitive capacities such as planning, reflection, and self-assessment.
The policy initiative supports a wide range of certified training programmes, covering foundational skills (such as language and digital literacy) and transversal or career-transition skills. To ensure learners have the means to participate, each adult receives €500 per year (up to EUR 5 000) in portable, cumulative, and digitally managed credits, reducing financial and administrative barriers to learning.
Source: France’s response to the Education Policy Outlook (2025): National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation; OECD (2019[12]) Individual Learning Accounts : Panacea or Pandora's Box?, https://doi.org/10.1787/203b21a8-en; Ministère du Travail et des Solidarités (2017[13]) Le compte personnel de formation (CPF), https://travail-emploi.gouv.fr/le-compte-personnel-de-formation-cpf accessed 20 October 2025.
Inclusion and equity approaches seek to work directly on motivation, dignity and perceived access. They recognise that telling adults that “learning matters” is not enough; these policies seek to make them feel that learning is for them, and to remove the social, emotional and logistical barriers that keep them out. The policy challenge is durability: many of these measures are pilots or targeted schemes, which risks leaving the most vulnerable with the least continuity.
Developing skills for lifelong learning
Skills are among the most frequently referenced dimension across the policies reviewed. Most approaches combine support for foundational competencies – such as literacy and numeracy – with higher-order or transversal abilities, including digital literacy, critical thinking and metacognitive “learning to learn” skills. Examples include Austria, the Flemish Community of Belgium, Estonia, France, Luxembourg and Portugal.
While many of the enabling structures that support these efforts (such as qualification frameworks and credit systems) are categorised under means in this framework (Chapter 1), the analysis here focuses on how countries help adults build, deepen and connect their skills throughout life. In other words, this section examines the development of skills rather than the infrastructure that validates or funds them.
Policies in this area show a shared ambition to help adults continually adapt to changing labour-market and technological demands. Across systems, countries are also working to make learning opportunities more modular, portable and responsive to workplace realities.
Across systems, three interrelated aims stand out across the initiatives analysed: Qualification pathways and stackability, which help adults progress through modular learning and accumulate recognised competencies over time; Employability and portability, which help ensure that skills developed remain transferable across jobs and sectors; and Digital skills empowerment, which enables adults to participate effectively in an increasingly digital economy.
Together, these reflect an ambition to shift from fragmented training initiatives towards coherent lifelong-learning systems that integrate relevance, flexibility and recognition.
Connecting learning pathways through modular and stackable qualifications
These approaches seek to make learning progression modular, cumulative and visible. They help adults build on prior experience and translate training into qualifications over time, as seen for example in Estonia, Norway, Portugal and Sweden. While such initiatives rely on enabling “means” like recognition systems and credit frameworks, their primary focus is on how adults develop and connect competencies across diverse learning settings, turning experience into visible, portable skills. In Norway, for instance, modular structuring organises training into smaller, competence-based units. Participants are placed in modules that match their existing skills, allowing them to complete only the missing components. Upon completion, they receive a certificate of competence, which both facilitates progression to further training and strengthens their position in the labour market.
Mechanisms and actions: Recognition of prior learning centres (e.g. Estonia, Portugal, Poland), micro-credential pilots (e.g. Brazil, Türkiye), and quality assurance frameworks to support alignment across the system (e.g. Norway, Czechia, Portugal) are common mechanisms. These mechanisms help validate skills and connect short learning opportunities to recognised qualifications but can remain fragmented without integration into national frameworks.
Scope and timeline: These initiatives are typically anchored in national systems, while workplace and sectoral routes, such as in Brazil or Slovakia, seek to allow greater flexibility and responsiveness. Longer timelines or permanent frameworks can help build trust and continuity.
Main actors typically involved: National ministries of education and labour oversee qualification frameworks and ensure system coherence (e.g. Estonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal). Specialised agencies and recognition centres, such as Portugal’s Qualifica Centres and Estonia’s RPL centres, administer validation processes, while quality assurance bodies (e.g. Norway, Czechia) help ensure consistency. Social partners and sectoral bodies often contribute to identifying emerging skill needs and validating new micro-credentials to sustain relevance.
Resources required: Sustained investment in infrastructure, digital systems and staff capacity is vital for stackability and quality. Austria and Portugal fund credential frameworks directly, while Estonia and Poland maintain national recognition centres as system “bridges.” Norway and Portugal have invested in training personnel to ensure the effective operation of these systems.
Tools and resources generated: These initiatives frequently produce recognition and progression guidelines. Estonia, Norway, Poland and Portugal have developed frameworks linking modular learning to qualification structures, helping adults see how short courses can build toward full qualifications.
Building modular, stackable learning pathways helps adults see how short courses lead to recognised qualifications and career progression. While these approaches depend on strong system-level “means,” their success ultimately rests on whether adults can develop and connect their skills meaningfully across contexts. Ensuring coherence, trust and transparency across providers (and sustained investment in quality assurance and staff capacity) can help these systems evolve from promising pilots to lasting foundations of lifelong learning.
Supporting employability and portability
Employability and portability aims focus on helping adults apply their skills in changing labour markets and carry them across jobs, sectors and employment types. While these policies often combine elements of both skills and means, they are included here because their central goal is to develop and connect competencies that remain valuable beyond a single context, rather than merely providing the structural enablers to do so.
Across systems, policies increasingly integrate recognition of prior learning, micro-credentials, and training in transversal and digital competencies with employer engagement and labour-market alignment. For example, Estonia’s VÕTA framework (Validation of Prior Learning and Work Experience) allows individuals to gain formal recognition for skills acquired through work, volunteering or informal learning. Complementing this, the VÕTI programme – a state-funded initiative supported by the European Social Fund – offers adult learning courses that strengthen both professional and general life skills. Norway’s Skills Plus Work provides employer-based training in foundational and workplace skills backed by government grants. Such policies are particularly relevant in labour markets marked by frequent job transitions and career changes. Without portability, learning remains confined to a single employer or context, limiting workers’ adaptability and economic resilience (OECD, 2024[14]).
Mechanisms and actions: Common approaches include combining recognition of prior learning (RPL) and credit-transfer mechanisms with modular course formats, as in Estonia, Norway, Poland and Portugal. Sectoral partnerships, such as those in the Flemish Community of Belgium, the Netherlands and Türkiye, also seek to strengthen labour-market alignment and tailor provision to industry needs.
Scope and timeline: These initiatives are most often sectoral or employee-based, with cyclical or time-bound implementation to allow flexibility to adjust to evolving market needs. For instance, the Netherlands and Poland operate through sectoral training funds with annual planning cycles, balancing responsiveness with continuity.
Main actors typically involved: Employer organisations and sectoral councils appear to play a central role in defining skill needs, managing levy funds and co-designing training offers, as seen in Poland and Türkiye. Education and training providers – particularly in Estonia, Norway and Portugal – deliver modular, RPL-aligned programmes that connect directly to employment pathways.
Resources required: Sustainable financing often depends on levy funds and cost-sharing mechanisms involving employers and social partners, as found in the Flemish Community of Belgium, Poland and Türkiye. Modular and blended formats, common in Estonia, Portugal and Sweden, provide the flexibility needed for workers to train while employed.
Tools and resources generated: Countries are investing in diagnostic and recognition tools, updated curricula and new RPL centres (e.g. Estonia, Norway, Poland) to formalise learning and strengthen worker mobility. Austria and Portugal have also produced new manuals and modular training materials to ensure coherence across providers and improve employability outcomes.
Policies promoting employability and portability bridge the gap between learning and the labour market by ensuring that adults’ skills remain valuable across jobs and careers. Success depends on balancing strong employer engagement with inclusive access for SMEs and non-standard workers. Scaling up recognition of prior learning, deepening sectoral partnerships and embedding portability in credential systems can make lifelong learning a genuine lever of economic adaptability and individual security.
Building digital and transversal skills to participate effectively in technology-enabled learning
Digital transformation policies bring together skills and means, but the core objective of the policies analysed (and the reason they are considered under skills in this chapter) is to help adults develop the digital and transversal competencies needed to participate in, and benefit from, technology-enabled learning. While system-level platforms and tools provide the infrastructure, these initiatives focus on building adults’ confidence, adaptability and capacity to learn in digital environments. For example, Portugal’s +Digital initiatives emphasise digital and transversal skills.
Across systems, technology-enabled learning has become a dominant trend. Many countries are scaling short, modular and blended formats that fit around work and family life. Estonia, Portugal, Sweden and China combine digital-skills training with digital learning environments, to help adults both use and navigate these technologies effectively. In Chile, the Netherlands and Thailand, national online platforms serve as access points for training, while in the Flemish Community of Belgium and Luxembourg sectoral upskilling initiatives target digital readiness in specific industries.
Mechanisms and actions: National platforms and digital catalogues, such as those in Chile, the Netherlands and Estonia, seek to serve as central access points to accredited courses and promote modular, self-paced learning. Sectoral initiatives in China and Luxembourg strive to tailor digital-skills provision to local industry needs.
Scope and timeline: Most initiatives operate at the national level, supported by sectoral or employer-based channels for technology adoption. Many combine long-term national strategies with short-term pilots to test new formats and ensure that digital expansion remains inclusive and sustainable.
Main actors typically involved: National digital agencies, such as in Estonia and Thailand, lead the coordination of infrastructure and governance. Sectoral employer groups, such as in Poland, help ensure that training aligns with evolving labour-market and technological needs.
Tools and resources generated: Countries have developed national platforms, catalogues and blended learning repositories (e.g. Chile, Estonia, the Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden), alongside sector-specific upskilling tools (e.g. China, Poland). These tools enable large-scale participation but require quality assurance and outreach mechanisms to prevent uneven access.
Digital and blended approaches: Increasingly, AI and data-driven tools, as in China and Estonia, offering adaptive content and real-time feedback. However, the most effective strategies deliberately combine these technologies with in-person mentoring and guidance to ensure that learning remains engaging and pedagogically sound.
Digital transformation is reshaping both what adults learn (through the development of digital and transversal skills) and how they learn, via online and blended delivery. National platforms and AI tools can personalise learning and expand access, but their success depends on coupling innovation with inclusion. Linking digital access to recognised credentials, mentoring and quality assurance can ensure that technological progress enhances equity and strengthens the human connections that sustain learning motivation.
Creating the means for lifelong learning
Most policies place a stronger emphasis on means, understood here as the tangible enablers that make lifelong learning possible. These include financial and time supports, recognised credentials, digital tools, guidance services, and accessible learning environments. This focus is understandable: governments can act most directly on these levers to remove barriers to participation and sustain delivery. While skills policies help adults build competencies, means policies focus on creating the conditions for that learning to take place. They make learning affordable, visible, and logistically feasible – transforming intention into action.
Examples from participating systems show this interplay between opportunity and access. Austria, Portugal and Sweden combine public funding with structured learning environments; Estonia and Portugal integrate micro-credentials and digital platforms into adult-learning systems; and Luxembourg and the Slovak Republic extend eligibility to self-employed workers. A large share of measures target access and participation, while others build cross-sector partnerships to share costs, align provision with labour-market needs, and sustain delivery over time.
Promoting access and participation through predictable funding, guidance and digital tools
Access and participation policies focus on removing practical barriers to learning – funding, time, information, guidance and delivery formats. They are the “means” to engage, but many also incorporate behavioural elements that strengthen adults’ will to participate, such as awareness campaigns, social proof and stigma reduction. Examples include public communication efforts in Estonia, Finland, Norway and Slovenia, and Japan’s emphasis on respecting adults’ intrinsic motivation to learn.
Mechanisms and actions: Financial incentives remain the most common lever, including vouchers, subsidies, scholarships and student finance (e.g. Austria, the Flemish Community (Belgium), Iceland, Luxembourg, Portugal and Sweden). Some systems, like the Netherlands, Poland and Türkiye, use levy-based training funds to foster employer co-investment, while others rely on subsidies and tax relief (e.g. Austria, Luxembourg, Japan). Guidance and one-stop services – such as those in Germany, Latvia, Lithuania and Sweden – help adults navigate complex options and reduce informational barriers.
Scope and timeline: These measures often aim for national coverage to enhance visibility and predictability (e.g. Austria, Iceland, Norway, Slovenia), while others are implemented through employee-based channels for faster workplace uptake (e.g. Austria, the Flemish Community (Belgium), Portugal). Some initiatives explicitly extend eligibility to self-employed workers (e.g. the Slovak Republic, Luxembourg) or include targeted overlays for disadvantaged groups (e.g. Iceland, Portugal). Most are permanent or multi-year to signal policy commitment.
Digital and blended approaches: Digital tools can reduce search and transaction costs by consolidating information on available training and funding. Portugal’s Qualifica+Digital and Poland’s national portal are examples of such platforms. Similarly, digital credentials – developed in Poland and Portugal – support recognition and credit transfer. Blended models in Estonia and Sweden mix workplace and online formats to make learning more flexible for working adults and SMEs.
Main actors typically involved: National ministries of education and labour lead policy design and financing, while Public Employment Services (PES) act as gateways in countries such as Germany, Latvia, Lithuania and Sweden, to connect adult learning to labour-market opportunities. Regional and local actors adapt provision to territorial needs, which is key for inclusion.
Resources required: Funding instruments – such as subsidies and vouchers (e.g. Austria, Portugal, Iceland) and scholarships (e.g. Luxembourg) – form the foundation of most initiatives. Infrastructure investments, including regional training hubs and local learning centres (e.g. the Flemish Community (Belgium), Brazil, Sweden), reduce territorial inequalities. Digital portals (e.g. Chile, the Netherlands, Thailand) broaden reach but demand ongoing governance and technical support. Human resources – particularly PES counsellors (e.g. Austria, Lithuania) – play a vital role in ensuring that access translates into sustained participation.
Tools and resources generated: Outreach campaigns and learner information packs (e.g. Brazil and Luxembourg) seek to normalise adult learning and reduce stigma. National portals (e.g. Chile, the Netherlands, Thailand) centralise course and funding information to lower search costs for learners and employers. Similarly, guidance and self-assessment tools help individuals identify learning needs, build confidence and visualise a path forward, which are critical first steps in fostering participation (OECD, 2019[15]).
Access measures are no longer only about paying for training; they are about creating the full ecosystem that enables adults to learn. The most mature models combine predictable funding with guidance, visibility, recognition and flexible delivery. The policy challenge is to ensure that these supports reach those least likely to participate otherwise, instead of mainly subsidising those already inclined to train.
Strengthening cross-sector partnerships to share costs, align training with labour-market needs and extend reach to SMEs and non-standard workers
Cross-sector partnerships aim to build shared responsibility for adult learning across government, employers, unions, or training providers. Compared with access and participation measures, they appear less frequently in the policies analysed – despite their importance for cost-sharing, relevance and sustainability. Their relative scarcity suggests an implementation gap: while most countries recognise the value of collaboration, fewer have developed stable institutional mechanisms to sustain it.
Where they exist, such partnerships help ensure that learning remains relevant to labour-market needs and embedded in work organisation, rather than being treated as an individual burden. For example, the Netherlands’ Sectoral Plans seek to enable employers and unions to co-finance training and jointly plan skill priorities within sectors. Türkiye’s nationwide lifelong-learning system, coordinated by the Ministry of National Education (MoNE–HBÖGM), similarly involves public employment services and social partners in expanding access and tailoring provision to labour-market needs, although its financing remains primarily public.
Mechanisms and actions: Sectoral councils and tripartite funds coordinate training priorities and co-financing in the Netherlands, Poland and Türkiye. Expansion of work-based learning models in countries like Estonia and the Netherlands seek to connect classroom learning with real workplace practice. Employer co-financing schemes in Japan and Türkiye help sustain company-based upskilling, particularly in industries adapting to automation and new technologies.
Digital and blended approaches: Partnerships increasingly operate through hybrid learning ecosystems, where employers and providers co-design modular programmes that combine online content, on-the-job practice and in-person workshops, as seen in the Netherlands and Sweden. These models seek to keep learning closely aligned with industry needs while preserving a human layer (e.g. mentoring, coaching and supervision) to supports learner persistence.
Tools and resources generated: Sectoral partnerships often create shared planning tools, such as joint training roadmaps, competence frameworks and funding instruments. The Netherlands, Poland and Türkiye have developed governance tools such as sectoral councils and common training manuals, while Japan has formulated guidelines for labour-management cooperation on training in the workplace.
Trade unions and worker organisations highlight that effective partnerships must embed worker-centred safeguards to ensure fair participation in lifelong learning. This includes making paid time to train and shared employer–public financing explicit design conditions, rather than implied through entitlements or voluntary arrangements. Embedding social dialogue and collective bargaining as governance mechanisms can help ensure that costs are distributed fairly across employers, workers and governments, while extending the reach of training opportunities to SMEs and non-standard workers.
Partnership models can enhance relevance, share costs and embed learning in work organisation, but they are not yet systematic. Without national guardrails, they risk uneven coverage: larger firms tend to benefit most, while SMEs, self-employed and non-standard workers may be left out. Scaling and institutionalising such partnerships through mechanisms like sectoral councils, levy funds or national strategies, can help turn collaboration into a lasting pillar of lifelong-learning systems.
Mid-career is a pivotal stage in the lifelong learning journey. Adults in this phase balance growing professional and family responsibilities while adapting to rapid technological and economic change. In the context of climate change, ensuring a just transition – so that affected workers can reskill as their contexts evolve – makes mid-career learning even more critical. Yet OECD data show that participation in adult learning declines sharply by mid-adulthood, even as the demand for new skills accelerates. Helping adults remain engaged and adaptable lifelong learners therefore requires policies that align system-level design with individual motivations and constraints.
Evidence from PIAAC and from 75 policy approaches analysed for this chapter shows that many countries are making progress towards this goal, although with different emphases across will, skills and means. These efforts signal strong political commitment and growing recognition that lifelong learning is essential for economic resilience and social inclusion. However, important implementation challenges persist. The challenge is less about doing more, and more about connecting policies better and sustaining them over time.
Fostering will for lifelong learning: A key challenge is transforming adults’ motivation and interest in learning into lasting participation. Learner entitlements, such as individual learning accounts, show promise in turning motivation into action by giving adults visibility, choice and purchasing power. However, learners’ autonomy can only be effective if is supported by quality assurance and accessible guidance so that adults can perceive the system as trustworthy and easy to navigate. Equally, outreach and inclusion strategies play a vital role in motivating adults who feel distant from learning. However, telling adults that “learning matters” is not enough. Awareness campaigns, local learning hubs and psychosocial supports can help rebuild confidence and a sense of both belonging and accessibility, especially among vulnerable groups. For policymakers, the priority is to be able to secure the durability (and adaptability) of these initiatives. This includes being able to scale up successful pilots and ensuring that institutionalised initiatives achieve longer-term stability, allowing them to become known and trusted as accessible and effective resources.
Developing skills for lifelong learning: Across systems, education policy makers face the key challenge of ensuring that adults not only participate in learning but also acquire skills that are recognised, transferable and future-ready. This is essential for a better of investment both for the system and the individual. Modular and stackable pathways can help adults see how short courses connect to qualifications and career progression, but this requires coherent quality and recognition frameworks across the system. Sustaining employer engagement is also essential to bridge the gap between learning and labour markets. Sectoral partnerships and recognition of prior learning mechanisms can make training more relevant to the adult. At the same time, it is important that actors such as SMEs and non-standard workers are not left behind. Digital transformation further reshapes what and how adults learn. Digital platforms and AI tools offer scalability and personalisation blended approaches that integrate online delivery with mentoring and in-person learning remain key to ensuring quality and inclusion. The examples collected suggest a window of opportunity for better differentiating the different types of skills that adults might need depending on their professional profiles (including trainers). In the same way, the success of these initiatives depends on equity safeguards, data governance and human support.
Creating the means for lifelong learning: The most mature systems recognise that access to training alone is not enough. The policy challenge remains in ensuring that these resources reach those least likely to participate, rather than primarily benefiting adults who would train regardless. Partnership models bringing together different actors (e.g. linking governments, employers, unions, education providers and community organisations) can help to share costs and increase relevance. Yet these remain uneven across sectors, often benefiting larger firms more than SMEs or self-employed workers.
Next steps for policymakers: To strengthen mid-career adults’ engagement in learning and move from fragmented initiatives to coherent lifelong-learning ecosystems that effectively support flexibility, countries could focus on:
Integrating will, skills and means more deliberately into cohesive policy frameworks. These need to align learner motivation, capability and opportunity.
Balancing flexibility with persistence, pairing short, adaptable learning offers with guidance and follow-up to sustain participation over time.
Reinforcing recognition and quality assurance so that learning (whether digital, modular or workplace-based) translates into valued, portable qualifications.
Embedding digital transformation within inclusive systems that combine innovation with safeguards for equity, quality and data trust.
Investing in human capacity and partnerships, so that trainers, mentors and social partners can better motivate and support learners across all contexts.
These directions can help governments to strengthen the connections between will, skills and means, so adults not only access learning, but stay engaged, grow and adapt throughout their working lives.
References
[5] Cedefop and Kankaraš, M. (2022), Workplace learning – Determinants and consequences – Insights from the 2019 European company survey,, https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2801/111971.
[11] EAEA (2025), Making technology work for adult learners: our 6 key research findings, https://eaea.org/2025/09/04/making-technology-work-for-adult-learners-our-6-key-research-findings/ (accessed on 4 November 2025).
[13] Ministère du Travail et des Solidarités (2017), Le compte personnel de formation (CPF), https://travail-emploi.gouv.fr/le-compte-personnel-de-formation-cpf (accessed on 15 September 2025).
[7] OECD (2025), Advancing Adult Skills through Individual Learning Accounts: A Step-by-Step Guide for Policymakers, Getting Skills Right, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/08e1bdaf-en.
[8] OECD (ed.) (2025), Making lifelong learning work for everyone, https://oecdedutoday.com/making-lifelong-learning-work-for-everyone/ (accessed on 21 September 2025).
[1] OECD (2025), Trends in Adult Learning: New Data from the 2023 Survey of Adult Skills, Getting Skills Right, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/ec0624a6-en.
[2] OECD (2024), Do Adults Have the Skills They Need to Thrive in a Changing World?: Survey of Adult Skills 2023, OECD Skills Studies, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/b263dc5d-en.
[14] OECD (2024), Promoting Better Career Choices for Longer Working Lives: Stepping Up Not Stepping Out, Ageing and Employment Policies, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/1ef9a0d0-en.
[4] OECD (2023), OECD Skills Outlook 2023: Skills for a Resilient Green and Digital Transition, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/27452f29-en.
[6] OECD (2022), Education Policy Outlook 2022: Transforming Pathways for Lifelong Learners, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/c77c7a97-en.
[9] OECD (2019), Getting Skills Right: Future-Ready Adult Learning Systems, Getting Skills Right, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264311756-en.
[12] OECD (2019), Individual Learning Accounts: Panacea or Pandora’s Box?, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/203b21a8-en.
[15] OECD (2019), Tools and Ethics for Applied Behavioural Insights: The BASIC Toolkit, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/9ea76a8f-en.
[10] Vincent Langley, R. (2024), Comparative Study of Adult Education Models Across OECD Countries, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/390170171_Comparative_Study_of_Adult_Education_Models_Across_OECD_Countries (accessed on 2025).
[3] World Economic Forum (2025), Future of Jobs Report 2025, https://reports.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_Report_2025.pdf (accessed on 10 September 2025).
A list of policies reviewed for the mid-adulthood stage can be found below.
Source: Education Policy Outlook (2025), National Pre-Filled Questionnaire for Comparative Policy Analysis: Nurturing Engaged and Resilient Lifelong Learners in a World of Digital Transformation