MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Thursday (Wednesday Davos time) expressed confidence in the Philippines’ continued economic growth, citing its “very, very good workforce.”
During a dialogue with World Economic Forum (WEF) President Borge Brende in Davos, Marcos said the Philippines has the youngest workforce in Asia which would help the country’s growth.
“The reason that I’m so confident about that is because we have this workforce, we have a very, very good workforce in the Philippines,” he said.
“We have the youngest workforce in Asia. You might be surprised to know, to learn, that the average age of Filipino workers is 23 and a half years old. So that is a huge demographic dividend,” Marcos added.
This demographic dividend, Marcos said, should be developed through upskilling and reskilling.
The President also takes pride in how the Philippines’ workforce is well-trained, sophisticated, and English-speaking, which is its advantage.
In terms of technological knowhow, Filipino workers are also on equal footing with their peers in any other country, he said.
“So that is where my confidence comes from and that is the confidence that I hope to exude sufficiently, to bring that confidence also to all of you and all of our potential partners in the world,” Marcos said.
The President, however, admitted that the main obstacles that the Philippines is facing are in the areas of infrastructure, quality of education, research and development, and bureaucratic red tape, among others.
To surmount present challenges, Marcos said his government is developing its infrastructure by promoting public-private partnerships (PPPs) and by reforming the bureaucracy especially through digitalization.
President Marcos stressed that reforming and reshaping the global economy gives the Philippines an opportunity to develop further.
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