Roadmap for Sustainable and Quality Employment Creation

AIM Policy Center and the National Competitiveness Council held a Thought Leaders' Forum with the theme "Roadmap for an Enhanced Environment Towards Sustainable Employment and Livelihood" last February 10, 2010. Ms. Ma. Lourdes A. Sereno, Executive Director of AIM Policy Center opened the session by emphasizing the need for employment generation and sustainable jobs, as a requirement for economic progress. She suggested that the government implement projects focused on addressing this concern. 

"There has to be a better way of harnessing resources. What we need is a core strategy," told by Ambassador Cesar Bautista as he introduced the Forum's Main Speaker - Ateneo De Manila University's Professor Fernando Aldaba.


Professor Aldaba's talk opened with a strong emphasis on job creation as a critical issue. He said that employment and human development have a natural link. Providing decent jobs enables  citizens to have dignity and good quality standard of life. He redefined the word "Hanapbuhay" as a means and an end, it is one's seeking for life through work or meaning through work. Among the measures he proposed the country to address the perennial problem on unemployment are the following:

• attract foreign and local investments (conducive business environment)
• craft a sound industrial policy
• assist SME's and linking them to large corporations
• assist LGU's to attract and sustain investments ("Sparkplugs" and "Clusters")
• development of financial markets to tap domestic savings and remittances e.g. LGU bonds
• further improving human capital
• creating a multi-stakeholder mechanism to formulate policies and programs and monitor implementation of job creation
• urgent action requiring more political will
• better collaboration and coordination among key stakeholders