ILO: ‘Intense competition’ hampers job search of six million youths worldwide

More than six million youths worldwide have either stopped searching for a job or had to take up additional studies due to the intense competition in the labor market, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said.

In the data released during a forum in Makati City participated in by the ILO, the Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Spanish Embassy on Thursday, the ILO said there was a need to absorb 40 million new entrants to the labor force each year.

The ILO data, distributed during the forum titled “Alternatives to Migration: Decent Jobs for Filipino Youth,” also noted that 600 million new jobs had to be created worldwide to address the backlog of 200 million unemployed persons.

During the forum, Ruth Honculada-Georget, Joint Programme Coordinator of the Joint Program on Youth Employment and Migration (JP-YEM) noted that education was key in helping youths find jobs.

“Education is the first step to decent and productive work,” Georget said.

She added that the skillset mismatch that the Philippines is experiencing could be remedied by proper education although it shouldn’t just end there.

“Young people need to be trained not only with the opportunities available but they should also know what their responsibilities are,” she said.

Honculada-Georget said the JP-YEM was funded by the Spanish government as part of their contribution amounting to $710 million to the United Nations (UN) in December 2006 for the Millenium Development Goals (MDG) fund.

Roughly $6 million was spent for the JP-YEM program in the Philippines which began in July 2009.

Poorest provinces

In an interview with GMA News Online with DOLE Undersecretary Lourdes Trasmonte, she said that the program was conducted in four provinces in the Philippines.

“It was conducted in Agusan del Sur, Antique, Maguindanao, Masbate,” she said.

She then explained that the four areas were chosen to conduct the ‘pilot’ programs since they were amongst the poorest provinces in the country.

“The purpose of this project is to put coherence of various programs of government agencies to resolve the problems of the vulnerable youth,” she said.

Ultimately, the program seeks to create alternatives for migration to the youth not only internationally but also domestically.

This could be achieved through creating opportunities in their localities without them having to go to different areas to seek for work.

“Poverty is not a hindrance to transform your life,” she said adding, “There are still opportunities to get employed whether by wage or through self business.”

The DOLE spearheaded the JP-YEM along with other government agencies such as the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, Department of Education and National Youth Commission to name a few.

Four programs

The ““Alternatives to Migration” forum featured the programs that beneficiaries of the JP-YEM were trained in:

(1) Labor Market- Responsive Technical Vocational Skills Training Programme for the Disadvantaged Youth

(2) PESO starter kit: Guide to Understanding the Public Employment Service Office

(3) Entrepreneurship Training Programme for Disadvantaged Youth

(4) Capacity Building Programme on Local Economic Development to Promote Youth Employment

Each of these programs gave the youth and disabled the skills and knowledge to either excel in wage earning or through putting up a small business.

The JP-YEM is a three-year program that aimed to improve the policy on youth employment and increase access to work for poor young men and women.

It is also in support of the Philippine government’s vision of a productive and competitive youth.

Millenium Development Goals

The JP-YEM is a program created to address the MDG’s Youth, Employment and Migration category.

The MDG are eight goals that the UN, along with member countries, set to be achieved by 2015.

The UN then uses the MDG Fund to establish programs in each member country depending on their needs.

In the Philippines, the focus was placed on four categories:

(1) Children, Food Security and Nutrition

(2) Environment and Climate Change

(3) Youth, Employment and Migration

(4) Democratic Economic Governance

Unemployment rates

Meanwhile, data from the ILO showed that the Euro crisis will go beyond borders and affect unemployment rates in East Asia, Latin America due to faltered exporting.

In East Asia alone, youth unemployment rates are expected to rise in the next five years to 10.4 percent from 9.5 percent in 2012.

For the global figure, youth unemployment rate will rise by 0.2 percent making it 12.9 percent in 2017 from 12.7 percent. – VVP, GMA News