DTI, DOLE team up to bring down jobless rate

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) will be joining forces to embark on a new government blueprint that targets to lower the country’s unemployment rate to five percent by 2022.

Called the “Trabaho, Negosyo at Kabuhayan: A Blueprint for Decent Employment and Entrepreneurship 2017-2022,” the new employment strategy was signed by DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez and DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III at the conclusion of the two-day employment and livelihood summit last Friday.

The blueprint will prioritize decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, formalization and growth of micro, small, and mediumsized enterprises ( MSMEs), youth unemployment reduction, education, and training.

“By 2022, we want to achieve full employment at five percent unemployment rate by creating 7.5 million jobs, mainly in key employment generating sectors such as manufacturing including food processing, construction, tourism, information technology-business process management, transportation and logistics, and retail trade,” Lopez said.

Lopez said the commitment was made in line with the 2030 agenda for sustainable development, which has provisions for decent work and economic growth, building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation.

In July this year, the country’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.4 percent from 6.5 percent in the same period last year, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed.

The government’s 20172022 employment blueprint envisions the transition of informal and economic units to the formal economy with full respect to fundamental rights and principles at work.

It also reiterates the implementation of the Comprehensive National Industrial Strategy to upgrade selected industries that generate employment, integrate manufacturing, agriculture and services, address supply chain gaps, and deepen industry participation in global value chains.

Lopez is encouraging local firms to invest in the industry and services sector, as well as in the country’s human capital to help address the perennial problem of skills mismatch and to sustain the growth of Philippines industries.

According to DOLE, the new blueprint will seek to surpass total employment generated under former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo which reached 4.8 million and that under President Benigno Aquino III which stood at 4.3 million.