Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and employment policies in the Philippines

In addition to the specific goal (SDG8) of promoting “sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all”, decent work is featured in many of the other SDGs.1 In adopting the SDGs, in particular SDG8, the international community has put job creation at the heart of economic policy-making and development plans: economic growth that generates [...] The Employment and Labour Markets Branch (EMPLAB) is engaged in global advocacy and in supporting Member States’ efforts to put the aim of more and better jobs at the centre of economic and social policies and of growth and development strategies. [...] The views expressed in them are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the ILO. [...] In this chapter we shall also emphasize this need to improve the overall productivity of the agriculture sector and develop non-farming job opportunities in the rural areas where many of the working-age population not in the labour force are located, so that they may be encouraged to participate more actively in the economy. [...] The primary baseline for the assessment is a report submitted to ILO in 2013 which evaluates the capacity of the Philippines to participate effectively in the ASEAN Economic Community (Yap, 2015).