Build ‘Skills Outcomes Fund’ to unlock aspirational livelihood opportunities for youths
Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education, Government of India, Jayant Chaudhary today initiated the campaign to build a Skills Outcomes Fund, a first-of-its-kind initiative aimed at unlocking aspirational livelihoods for youth from low-income backgrounds. The fund envisages to mobilise public and private capital to scale outcomes-based financing (OBF) in India’s skilling ecosystem, linking investments directly to verified employment outcomes.
The Skills Outcomes Fund aims to unlock aspirational and sustainable livelihoods for youths from low-income backgrounds across India. This initiative is expected to become the largest outcomes-based financing (OBF) initiative for skilling globally and marks a significant step in strengthening the adoption of OBF within India’s skilling ecosystem. The initiative builds on India’s growing global leadership in outcomes-based financing, a theme highlighted at the Outcomes Finance Alliance Summit 2026 in Cape Town, where Shri Jayant outlined India’s approach to aligning public policy, private capital, and measurable employment outcomes.
Senior Economic Adviser, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Ms. Manisha Sensarma added, “As India’s skilling ecosystem matures, the policy conversation is naturally shifting from measuring inputs to measuring outcomes. Outcomes-based financing provides a powerful framework to strengthen accountability, improve program efficiency, and ensure that public and private investments are directly linked to employment results.
CEO, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), Arunkumar Pillai said, “The experience of the Skill Impact Bond has shown that when incentives across training providers, employers, investors, and government are aligned around verified outcomes, the entire skilling ecosystem becomes more focused on real employment results.
The roundtable brought together a distinguished group of partners from the philanthropic, corporate, and development ecosystem who are actively shaping India’s skilling and livelihoods landscape. Participants included representatives from organisations such as Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL), Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Limited (HURL), the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, JPMorgan Foundation, the Gates Foundation, EY Foundation, JSW Foundation, Bajaj Finserv, NSE Foundation, the Naveen Jindal Foundation, GMR Varalakshmi Foundation, Hindustan Unilever Limited, Bridges Outcomes Partnerships, and GIZ. Their participation reflects growing cross-sector momentum behind outcomes-based financing as a tool to strengthen employment outcomes and scale innovative skilling models. (UPDATED ON 8TH APRIL 2026)
