workplace training should also be subject to quality control in the form of contractual arrangements inspections and selfevaluations investing in highquality early childhood education and initial schooling particularly for children from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds can be an efficient strategy to ensure that children start strong in their education careers and first skills beget future skills later in life financial support targeted at disadvantaged students and schools can improve the development of skills governments can design financial incentives and favourable tax policies that encourage individuals and employers to invest in postcompulsory education and training individuals can be encouraged to shoulder more of the financial burden of tertiary education while disadvantaged individuals should be assured access to education opportunities through grants and loans if cuts to public spending have to be made they should be based on the longterm costbenefit ratios of alternative public investments