Investing in human capital is key to sustain high growth rate — PIDS

Investing in human capital is key to sustain high growth rate — PIDS by Edu Lopez August 16, 2014 Share this: The Philippine Institute of Development Studies (PIDS) has stressed that investing in human capital is a key factor that can sustain the high growth rate the Philippines has been experiencing in the past years. PIDS consultant Dr. Jose Albert said that education and health are crucial in achieving labor effectiveness and productivity. The poor, however, are confronted by the high rate of unemployment, underemployment, and low incomes. Albert noted that people with access to education and health have better chances of getting well-paying jobs. "Education is a fundamental long-term solution to the Philippines’ development challenge. It is a way to escape poverty and achieve better future and higher incomes,” said Albert. Albert stressed the need to improve the quality of education aside from attaining universal primary education. "It is crucial to keep children in school, maximize their learning, and ensure that they complete their schooling.” He noted that despite the growth of the Philippine economy in the past years, the gap between the richest and the poorest Filipino households in terms of health financing, access to services, and health status has not significantly improved. A policy note titled "The Puzzle of Economic Growth and Stalled Health Improvement in the Philippines,” by PIDS consultant Oscar Picazo and co-authors stressed that while macroeconomic growth and financial stability are important, the goal of a country’s growth efforts should be human development in a sustainable environment. On top of these is the pressing need for job creation. In 2013, the unemployment rate was 7.3 percent while underemployment stood at 19.8 percent. Given this backdrop, Drs. Aniceto Orbeta, Vicente Paqueo, and Leonardo Lanzona, in a PIDS study titled "Labor Policy Analysis for Job Expansion and Development” underscored the importance of addressing the jobs challenge through the massive expansion of poverty-reducing jobs and sustained human capital development through education and training. Dr. Rafaelita Aldaba, in "The Philippine Manufacturing Industry Roadmap: Agenda for A New Industrial Policy, High Productivity Jobs, and Inclusive Growth,” stressed that the manufacturing sector can provide higher wage and higher productivity jobs than the services sector.//