Suchergebnisse

One aspiration of the Agricultural Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA) is the promotion of industry dispersal and rural industrialization. This involves a policy of structural transformation, which attempts to transition the economy from a low productivity sector, such as agriculture, to a high productivity sector, such as industry. This study shows that despite the efforts of AFMA, this process has not been accomplished. Previous literature has attributed this failure to many factors, including policy failure and lack of investments. However, the paper argues that the role of technological change has not been given considerable attention. Empirical analysis demonstrates that policy formulation and capital accumulation are not sufficient in achieving structural transformation. Even if the correct policies are implemented and adequate investments are available, the sustainable transition from agriculture to industrialization will require the adoption of appropriate technology that utilizes local resources, including labor. To do this, the government must set up not only an environment for research and development and extension but also provide incentives in the form of transfers to the private sector to invest in technology.

The Philippines is currently negotiating a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU). This paper is expected to shed light on these negotiations in terms of the possible effects of the FTA on the employment in particular. Conceptually, the effects of FTA on the labor market may come from two sources. The first is the intensification of free trade which can either be an opportunity or a threat to the workers, depending on whether the trading of goods and services are complementary or substitutable to the goods and services produced in the country. The second source is the proposed set of core labor standards which the EU can impose given the previous FTAs it has forged with other countries. These standards can result in making the country less competitive.Analyzing the experience of the country with its previous FTAs with the ASEAN and Japan, the paper found that FTAs as a whole have a positive impact on employment. While there may be unemployment caused by the entry of more imports from other countries, the effect of the trade commitments found in FTAs is essentially to mitigate such negative effects. It is then proposed that the country should negotiate within the same rules and standards that are set in their previous FTAs and that appropriate taxes and subsidies should be imposed in order to counteract the negative effects of further trade and labor standards.

The alarming number of children engaged in labor as released by the National Statistics Office from the years 1995 to 2001 gave rise to a timely national policy study to review all the important studies available on child labor and assess key government policies affecting child labor in the Philippines. The paper provides an overview of the nature, extent and predominant forms of child labor in the country based on available data disaggregated by age, sex, geographic distribution, industry, and occupation. Previously done literature about child labor is examined to identify determinants as to why children work despite low wages and poor working conditions and the possible consequences and implications socially and economically. A review of the international and national policies operating in the Philippines concerning child labor is conducted to identify best practices and replicable approaches as well as to assess the adequacy of policy responses in eliminating child labor. The paper ended with proposals and recommendations on what else needs to be done and an agenda for possible future researches.