ADB approves $500m loan for Philippine labour programmes

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved on Thursday a $500 million million policy-based loan to support the Philippine government’s efforts to expand labour market programmes and improve the productivity and employability of Filipino workers.

The loan will also aid in implementing reforms to create a more favourable investment environment for job creation, according to an ADB statement.

The ADB’s Business and Employment Recovery Programme-Subprogramme 2 supports government efforts to promote inclusive economic growth by providing skills training to the labor force, including vulnerable youth, to meet industry demands.

It also aims to boost women’s workforce participation through the Philippine technical and vocational education and training (TVET) system and improve access to job opportunities through government facilitation programmes, the statement added.

The government aims to boost formal private sector employment by 600,000 to 700,000 jobs annually, increasing the private sector’s share of total employment to 51 per cent from 49 per cent in 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic causing significant job losses and industry contraction.

Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English

Subediting: Y.Yasser

 

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