Summary of country studies: India : PART 2: Summaries of country studies

This volume examines the experiences of 21 developed and developing countries in adjusting their training provision to meet the new demands of a greener economy. It shows that skills development is critical to unlocking the employment potential of green growth, yet skills shortages are becoming an obstacle in realizing this potential. The report recommends that countries devise strategies based on well-informed policy decisions, social dialogue, and coordination among ministries and between employers and training providers.

The Indian economy is growing fast and is now the fourth largest economy in the world and the fifth largest greenhouse gas emitter, accounting for 5 per cent of global emissions. However, in per capita terms, India's carbon emissions from fuel combustion (CO2/capita in tonnes) account for 28.5 per cent of the global average in 2008, which is low for a rapidly developing country, especially in comparison with other developing countries such as China which has a per capita CO2 emission of 112 per cent of the global average. India's policies for sustainable development focus on energy efficiency and pricing, renewable energy, a cleaner energy supply, pollution abatement, reforestation and mass transport. These policies could translate into projects that generate millions of 'green jobs' in the coming years.About 52 per cent of the working population of India are engaged in agriculture, making this the biggest employment sector. Crop production in India is critically dependent on the summer monsoon, making the agricultural sector vulnerable to climate change impacts. Currently 2.6 per cent of GDP is being invested in adaptation measures. A major problem is the degradation of national water resources due to excessive water withdrawal for irrigation, industry and domestic consumption.The Environmental Performance Index identifies broadly accepted targets for environmental performance and measures how close each country comes to these goals. India's Environmental Performance Index score is better than China's or Pakistan's; however, it is not as good as Sri Lanka's or some other large South Asian countries.