The government and the private sector are taking steps to adapt to the disruption caused by the pandemic.
Secretary Ramon M. Lopez of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said his agency has taken steps to create modules designed to help micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) cope in a digital present.
Industry groups such as the Philippine Constructors Association (PCA) are also keen on equipping young professionals and students in the industry with skills needed in the new normal.
“We’d like to reiterate that every job that we restore is a step toward beating poverty not only for that worker but also for his or her entire family,” Lopez said in a speech on Wednesday.
“This restoration of their income will bring them closer to achieving a more comfortable and greater quality of life in the post-pandemic future,” Lopez added.
The trade chief said that a recent survey by the DTI showed that 73 percent of micro, small and medium enterprises respondents said they needed capacity building related to digitizing their business.
Based on the data, Lopez said, those who are engaged in e-commerce prefer to focus on the digital skills while those who are not engaged in e-commerce prefer skills on how to get started in an online business.
Lopez said the top needed skills identified by the respondents are financial marketing and content management basics of e-commerce as well as starting an online business.
“With these in mind, the DTI e-commerce group has crafted modules specific to the needs of MSME’s based on their level of digitization,” Lopez said.
He added the DTI is also looking forward to the result of the case studies to be done on MSMEs through the project by the International Labour Organization and the Japanese government.
The case studies, Lopez said, would provide more insights on how the DTI can help MSMEs recover from the pandemic. This, he said, is crucial if the country is to regain the jobs lost due to the lockdowns.
Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Lopez said the country’s unemployment rate in May of 2021 was down to 7.7 percent from 8.7 percent in April.
Further, the total number of unemployed individuals 15 years old and over decreased by 408,000 and the total number of employed persons within that same period increased by 1.45 million.
“The improved employment figures reflect the easing of quarantine restrictions and the calibrated and safe reopening that the government is doing to revive the business sector and bring back more jobs,” Lopez said.
Meanwhile, the PCA said their own survey showed that one of the biggest challenges the industry is facing is the shortage of skilled personnel.
PCA President Wilfredo L. Decena said this has been a long-standing problem for their industry and could not be addressed overnight.
Given the disruption caused by the pandemic and advances in technology, Decena said the PCA decided to reach out to students and young professionals to create a more sustainable and robust construction industry.
“We cannot just build, we have to build better and in order to do that, and we need to have a more skilled workforce and Filipino construction firms that can compete globally with international firms. This is why PCA continues to be bullish in creating regular webinars that will help impart new knowledge on processes and skills to the industry,” Decena said.
PCA said it recently conducted a free online webinar series for students and young professionals from all over the country.
The webinar series aimed to guide the next generation of nation builders to start their career in the construction industry on the right footing.