Protracted armed conflict and violence leads to widespread destruction of already fragile education and training systems in developing countries and hampers their chances to participate in and benefit from globalization. Young people take up arms instead of learning employable skills. Once the conflict is (or at least seems to be) over, refugees and internally displaced people return home hoping to establish themselves in paid jobs or as self-employed. However, gainful employment is in short supply and the skills available do not suit the job opportunities that do exist. Some countries try to take the low starting point as a window of opportunity (a clean slate) to embark on ambitious reform of the education and training sector, but their success depends inter alia on the degree of security and stability that has been established, and the level of international investment for reconstruction available. The new systems tend to address the needs of a small formal sector and ignore development of skills in the informal sector in which the majority of people work. This article describes post-conflict developments in South Africa after apartheid, and Afghanistan after 23 years of war. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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