Tsavora Fencing Mtaani Club members take part in a fencing bout during a ‘fencing mtaani’, meaning ‘fencing in the streets’ in Swahili, training session in the Mathare informal settlement of Nairobi, Kenya in June 2024. Along the muddy tracks of the sprawling Mathare informal settlement in Kenya’s capital, scores of teenagers train each weekend. 
Photo credit: Luis Tato/AFP via Getty Images

Designing skills development content that reflects the diverse realities of young people

Much of the conversation about youth skills centres on what skills the young people need for the future. Increasingly, the answers include digital literacy, entrepreneurship, artificial intelligence, financial management, communication, and technical expertise. These are undoubtedly important. However, another outlook deserves equal attention: How are these skills being taught, and who are they truly reaching?

Too often, skills development programmes are designed with an ideal learner in mind, someone with reliable internet, access to digital devices, fluency in the language of instruction, uninterrupted electricity, and the financial means to participate fully. While this learner certainly exists, they do not represent every young person.

Across Africa and much of the world, young people begin from very different starting points. A university student in a capital city has access to opportunities that may be unavailable to a young farmer in a rural community. A young entrepreneur with a smartphone and affordable internet navigates a different learning environment from someone who relies on a shared community computer or limited mobile data. Even language can shape opportunity. Skills taught exclusively in international languages may unintentionally exclude young people who understand complex ideas more confidently in Kiswahili or their local language.

These differences are not reflections of ability but of access. This distinction matters because many well-intentioned programmes measure fairness by whether everyone receives the same training. Yet treating everyone the same does not necessarily create equal opportunity. A one-size-fits-all approach may appear equitable, but it often overlooks the realities that influence whether young people can understand, apply, and benefit from what they are taught.

Designing more inclusive skills development does not mean lowering standards or simplifying expectations. It means recognising that although access is uneven, potential is not.

When this principle guides programme design, important questions begin to emerge. Can learning materials be made available both online and offline? Are examples drawn from urban and rural contexts alike? Is technical language explained in ways that are accessible to first-time learners? Are local languages used where they can improve understanding? Can training accommodate young people with disabilities? Can practical exercises be completed using resources that learners already have, rather than equipment that is beyond their reach? These considerations make learning possible.

The way knowledge is communicated is just as important as the knowledge itself. A brilliant training manual that is difficult to understand serves few people. An online course that assumes constant internet access excludes those who need it most. Likewise, a skills programme that ignores local realities risks teaching concepts that remain disconnected from everyday life. Inclusive design bridges this gap. It presents knowledge in ways that young people can relate to, encourages practical application within their own environments, and builds confidence by meeting learners where they are before helping them move forward.

As technology continues to transform education, there is an opportunity to rethink what we teach and how we teach it. Digital platforms, multilingual content, community learning spaces, radio programmes, mobile applications, and locally relevant case studies all play a role in expanding access to skills development. Successful skills development should be measured not by the number of courses delivered or certificates awarded but by whether young people can translate what they have learned into meaningful opportunities, sustainable livelihoods, and lasting contributions to their communities.

The future of skills development, therefore, is not about creating different standards for different learners. It is about designing learning that recognises different realities while believing equally in every young person’s capacity to succeed.