Title: Imparting industry relevant skills through skill development initiatives in the apparel industry: a literature review

Authors: Roopali Shukla; Anuradha Thakur

Addresses: Apparel Training and Design Centre, India ' Fraser Valley India, India

Abstract: The global apparel market is positioned at US $1.7 trillion, approximately 2% of the world's GDP and is expected to reach US $2.6 trillion by 2025. In India, this sector contributes 11% to exports and 4% to the gross domestic product. It is the second largest employment generating sector and to remain globally competitive, it requires a huge skilled human resource. The training programs provide industry relevant skill trainings. The current paper conducts a systematic review of literature covering publications and studies on global skill development initiatives. It also aims to identify the directions for further research after studying 90 publications during the period of 1991-2020. It identifies the skill gaps in the job role of sewing machine operator (SMO) in the apparel sector in India. Through the content analysis, this paper identifies three skill constructs that impact the employability of the candidates after completion of such training programs.

Keywords: apparel industry; sewing machine operator; SMO; basic literacy skills; soft skills; technical skills; skill development.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBG.2024.140582

International Journal of Business and Globalisation, 2024 Vol.38 No.1, pp.56 - 82

Received: 06 Sep 2020
Accepted: 17 Nov 2020
Published online: 28 Aug 2024 *

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