President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.'s foreign trips have brought into the country some 75,000 jobs in the power and renewable energy sector, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said on Tuesday, Aug. 8.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos (Ali Vicoy/MANILA BULLETIN)
So far, the President has embarked on 14 foreign trips, the latest of which was a three-day state visit to Malaysia.
The Labor chief said that while it takes some time for the fruits of these trips to materialize in terms of job creation, he recently heard from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) that there are new jobs in the power and renewable energy sector.
“At sa aking pagkakatanda, mayroon siyang (Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual) binanggit na limang bansa bahagi na diyan ang Germany, ang Singapore, ang US at mayroon pang dalawa, Netherlands yata kasama din (And as far as I can remember, he mentioned five countries and Germany is included there, Singapore, US and there are two more, I think Netherlands is included),” Laguesma added during a Palace press briefing.
“Nabanggit niyan na ito ay nasa proseso at mayroon siyang nabanggit na puwedeng malikhang hanapbuhay o trabaho ang sana ay hindi ako nagkakamali mga 75,000 iyong nabanggit niya doon sa limang nabanggit na bansang nagpahayag ng kanilang commitment (He mentioned that these are under process and he also mentioned that livelihoods or jobs can be generated I hope I am not wrong that he mentioned around 75,000 from the five countries that expressed their commitment).”
Since the jobs will fall under the renewable energy and power sector, the official underscored the need to coordinate with the DTI and the Department of Energy (DOE) to ensure the availability of manpower.
He said that “collaboration” and “convergence” among government agencies are important so the private sector will not be discouraged from creating employment.
“Makita na nila na in placed na iyong mga kinakailangan nilang imprastraktura kasama na rin ang manpower requirement (They should see that the needed infrastructure is in place, including the manpower requirement),” Laguesma added.
The Labor secretary joined the sectoral meeting with Marcos on Tuesday to present DOLE’s Philippine Labor and Employment Plan 2023-2028 (LEP).
The LEP is in line with the 8-point Socio-Economic Agenda of the Marcos administration and the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028 aimed at reducing unemployment and addressing underemployment with better jobs.
Through LEP, thousands of jobs are expected in infrastructure sector for the Build Better More Project of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).