Building Human Capital Where It Matters: Homes, Neighborhoods, and Workplaces

NCAER hosted a seminar on 23 February 2026, featuring members of the People Practice Group at the World Bank, who presented findings from the Bank’s latest flagship report, “Building Human Capital Where It Matters: Homes, Neighborhoods, and Workplaces”.

The report was presented by Dr Mamta Murthi, Vice President, and Dr Joana Silva, Deputy Chief Economist, of the People Practice Group at the World Bank. Drawing on cross-country evidence from household surveys, administrative data, and labour market statistics over the past 15 years, the report examined trends in nutrition, learning outcomes, workforce skills, labour force participation, and employment patterns across low- and middle-income countries.

The report highlighted the emergence of a “silent human capital crisis” with the deficit being especially prominent for women and the youth. While core insights of the report included stepping stones for reversing the deficit, the overall analysis underscored how service access, job quality, and skill formation interact over the life cycle to shape long-term human capital accumulation.

The seminar was chaired by Mr Suresh Goyal, Director General, NCAER, who steered the discussion and highlighted the policy relevance of the report’s findings. Dr Pallavi Choudhuri, Senior Fellow and Deputy Director at NCAER’s National Data Innovation Centre (NDIC), served as the discussant, offering critical reflections on the report’s findings.