PH jobless rate among highest in Asia
By Ted P. Torres, The Philippine Star
Posted at 10/27/2012 9:10 AM | Updated as of 10/27/2012 9:22 AM
MANILA, Philippines - NSCB secretary general Jose Ramon G. Albert said
despite socioeconomic gains and positive growth in the gross domestic
product (GDP), poverty and unemployment in the Philippines remained
unchanged.
"The headcount poverty rate and other indicators of poverty have almost
remained unchanged for almost a decade – poverty incidence among the
Filipino population ranged between 24.9 to 26.5 percent during the
period," he said.
Albert noted that most of the other countries moved from being heavily
dependent on the agriculture sector to developing the manufacturing
sector, which offered better jobs, higher wages and set a decisive
impact on the country's economy. Roughly six of 10 poor underemployed
belong to the agriculture, forestry and hunting business in 2009.
However, the Philippines failed to follow suit.
Fresh data show that the Philippines had declining employment share in
the manufacturing sector while increasing employment in other sectors
and retaining a significant number in the agriculture sector.
Albert said among the classic examples are the cases of Vietnam and
China, which have made large strides in poverty reduction.
Poverty incidence in Vietnam was 63.7 percent in 1993 and went down to
16.9 percent in 2008. In China, poverty incidence was 60.2 percent in
1990, which dropped to just 13.1 percent in 2008.
In terms of their working poor, Vietnam's proportion of working poor
went down from 71.5 percent in 1995 to 20.4 percent in 2006. China, on
the other hand, registered a 73.1 percent proportion of working poor in
1992, which went down to 18.3 percent in 2005.
"In both these countries, the share of employed persons in agriculture,
forestry, and hunting has been decreasing while the share of those in
manufacturing has been increasing. In other words, the poor (from
agriculture) managed to exit from poverty by getting better employment,"
the NSCB head said.
Lack of opportunities for the farmers result in low educational levels
in the agriculture sector, which in turn, account for the low employment
rate. Nearly three out of every five (59.3 percent) of the working poor
are elementary undergraduate or graduate.
The NSCB revealed that poor underemployed Filipinos are aged between 35
and 44 in 2006 and 2009. Most of the poor underemployed are married
(72.2 percent in 2006 and 69.9 percent in 2009) and male (71.8 percent
in 2006 and 70.4 percent in 2009).
Poverty among the underemployed consistently decreases as educational
achievement increases.
Most of the poor underemployed are working as laborers and unskilled
workers (50.1 percent in 2006 and 53 percent in 2009) and, farmers,
forestry workers and fishermen (31.1 percent in 2006 and 27.7 percent in
2009).
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