Philippines' young population set to meet global workforce needs — economist

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is positioned to provide the world with the much-needed workforce in the coming decades, an economist from the World Bank said.

While other nations such as Japan and South Korea face the challenges of aging societies, the Philippines' young demographic becomes an asset for meeting global labor demands.

During a recent gathering in Manila, Quy-Toan Do, an economist from the World Bank's Development Research Group in Washington, D.C., said that the demographic challenge facing the Philippines lies not in an aging population but in ensuring enough job opportunities for its young workforce, both at home and abroad. 

“In the horizon we are comfortable making predictions that by 2050, the Philippines is still an expanding and a young population,” Do said.

He added that the current average fertility rate of around 2.8 children per woman in the Philippines surpasses the replacement rate of 2.1.

Based on the "World Development Report 2023: Migrants, Refugees, and Societies" released in April, wealthy and middle-income countries are grappling with declining populations, intensifying the competition for workers globally.

Middle-income nations, according to the World Bank report, "are growing older before they become rich."

"The population of low-income countries is  booming,  but  young  people  are  entering  the  workforce  without  the  skills  needed  in  the global labor market. These trends will spark a global competition for workers," the report read.

With approximately 184 million migrants worldwide, aligning policies with the skill requirements of destination countries becomes crucial, the World Bank said.