These are among the priorities as the RDC 7 finalizes the Regional Development Plan (RDP) 2023-2028 for approval.
The RDC 7 convened a special meeting with stakeholders from the private sector, local government units (LGUs) and government agencies across the region on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023, at Cebu Parklane International Hotel in Cebu City, during which endorsements from the RDC’s sectoral committees for the draft Central Visayas RDP 2023-2028 were discussed.
Data shows that in 2021, the employment rate in Central Visayas was 92.2 percent, indicating a recovery in the region’s labor market after the pandemic. However, job quality deteriorated in the same year as the underemployment rate rose to 18.9 percent, which was higher than in 2019.
The RDC 7 seeks to address underemployment, as this has a negative impact on the poverty level, such as inadequate income and a lower purchasing power. The Philippine Statistics Authority defines underemployed persons as employed persons who express the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job or an additional job, or have a new job with longer working hours.
The RDP seeks to decrease the unemployment rate from 7.8 percent in 2021 to 4.5 to 5.0 percent in 2028, while increasing the percentage of wage and salary workers in private establishments to totally employed from 45.7 percent in 2021 to 52 to 54 percent in 2028.
The government agencies anticipate manpower reduction in some industries as a result of technological advancement in AI (artificial intelligence), robotics, virtual reality, 3D printing, automation and others. Climate Change and natural disasters have also proven to affect job generation and productivity.
When typhoon Odette struck the region in 2021, it affected 27,948 workers, 75 percent of whom were in the highly urbanized cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, many workers in the region lost their jobs.
Among other concerns, the Strategy Framework RDP 2023-2028 will mandate concerned government agencies to anticipate and identify demand-driven skills and requirements in every industry, strengthening the Skills Registry System and Labor Market Information in the local government level and collaborating with other concerned government agencies, academe and industries in training and upgrading the skills of the workforce.
The region also has to promote human capital investment that centers on preparing the workforce on the future impact of technology on jobs generation, while businesses and the workforce also have to be resilient in man-made disasters and natural calamities.
Institutionalizing the Public Employment Service Office also has to be prioritized, which is a non-fee charging multi-dimensional employment service facility or entity established in all LGUs in coordination with the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole).
Legislative agenda
During the meeting, government officials also discussed two bills that they said should be filed and prioritized in Congress, namely the Revised National Apprenticeship Program and the Job Creation Strategy Bill.
Under the Revised National Apprenticeship Program, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) has to make reforms on the apprenticeship program, focusing on skills acquisition and youth employment to make it more attractive not only to entrepreneurs but also to the apprentice.
The Job Creation Strategy Bill focuses on the creation of the Inter-Agency Council for Jobs and Investment, which will focus on employment recovery and job creation in specific industries and emerging industries.