The Marcos administration has outlined a long-term plan to generate high-quality jobs, strengthen the country’s workforce, and future-proof the labor supply.

The Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev), along with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), launched the 10-year Trabaho Para sa Bayan (TBP) Plan 2025-2034 in Pasay City on Monday.

The country’s first long-term jobs plan satisfies the mandate of Republic Act 11962, or the Trabaho Para sa Bayan Act, to establish a comprehensive national employment masterplan.

The 10-year employment blueprint targets to increase the country’s labor force participation rate to 68.2 percent by 2034.

During the launch, DEPDev Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon said the Philippines had the lowest percentage of working-age population that is either employed or actively seeking employment at 64.9 percent in 2023, which is below the level of other ASEAN countries.

In 2023, Malaysia had the highest labor force participation rate of 70 percent, followed by Indonesia at 69.5 percent, Vietnam at 68.9 percent, and Singapore and Thailand both at 68.6 percent.

The government also eyes a 3 percent unemployment rate and a single-digit underemployment rate of 7 to 9 percent by 2034.

These targets are below the actual unemployment rate last year at 3.8 percent and underemployment of 13.3 percent.

Edillon also shared the priority strategies to meet the targets under the 10-year TPB Plan.

For the short and medium term, the government plans to attract more investors to generate quality jobs for Filipinos, improve ease of doing business, promote technology adoption, facilitate school to work transition, expand social protection program, and increase program take-up in skills training especially among the priority groups.

“This transformation strengthens our mandate as we integrate various socioeconomic goals into a unified and forward-looking strategy that truly benefits all Filipinos,” DEPDev Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.

“These evolving trends underscore the urgent need for adaptive policies that foster economic growth and offer essential support to Filipino workers as they navigate these evolving challenges. With our collective effort, we will create an inclusive, efficient, and dynamic labor market environment where Filipinos can access meaningful, quality jobs, enabling them to have a matatag, maginhawa, at panatag na buhay.” (PNA)