Image from The Economists Journal (Second of three parts)

Construction is the largest contributor to employment among industry subsectors

Developments at the New Clark City in Pampanga is being ramped up.

Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) President Vince Dizon said a new port terminal had started construction and will finish in June 2020.

In conjunction with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Dizon added, the agency is building roads going to the New Clark City that is otherwise known as the Clark Green City. It will be the venue for the Southeast Asian Games set for December next year.

The Duterte administration’s “Build, Build, Build” team recently launched a “Jobs, Jobs, Jobs” portal which is described in the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) site as “an online jobs site aimed at consolidating all employment opportunities from all concessionaires and construction companies involved in the government’s flagship infrastructure program.”

“The ‘Jobs, Jobs, Jobs’ portal will serve as a job-matching platform between potential employers and employees as the government moves to complement its ‘Build, Build, Build’ infrastructure initiatives with more job opportunities for Filipinos,” Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar said.

The government reported a year-on-year increase of 468,000 jobs in the construction sector based on the periodic Labor Force Survey conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority in April 2018.

“We are elated with the strong performance of the construction sector. In April 2018, total employment in the sector reached 4.012 million from 3.544 million during the same period in 2017. This is a 13.2-percent increase,” Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III said.

At the start of the Duterte administration in 2016, employment in the construction sector was at 3.381 million.

“Construction is the largest contributor to employment among industry subsectors during the period and we believe the Build, Build, Build infrastructure program is the main driver of growth,” Bello added.

Villar said “Build, Build, Build is gaining momentum at an unprecedented rate,” noting that more jobs were generated during the first two years of the Duterte administration compared to five years prior.

“In the first quarter of 2018, the Gross Value Added in construction is at 9.3 percent,” he added.

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade also noted the increase in infrastructure spending is expected to create around one million direct and indirect jobs annually.

According to the transport chief, “this administration, through the strong leadership of President Duterte, is on target. Investments in construction grew by 10.1 percent in the first quarter of 2018. Public construction expanded by 25.1 percent.” (To be continued)