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At least 22 million people in the Asia-Pacific region could live in poverty due to the economic disruptions caused by the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, according to a latest report from the International Organization. of Labor (ILO).
The United Nations labor arm made the projection in its Asia-Pacific Employment and Social Outlook 2020 report.
“Preliminary estimates in the report indicate that between 22 and 25 million more people could fall into working poverty, which would boost the total number of working poor [living on less than $1.90 a day] in the Asia-Pacific region to between 94 and 98 million in 2020, ”the ILO said in a statement.
He noted that this could worsen inequalities, especially in developing regions, which include the Philippines.
In the report, the Philippines was listed as one of the countries with the highest job loss for the second quarter of the year at 19 percent.
Vulnerable sector
This year, some 81 million jobs were lost in the Asia-Pacific region due to the pandemic and another million with reduced hours of work or benefits.
The ILO estimated that the unemployment rate in the region could rise from 4.4 percent in 2019 to between 5.2 percent and 5.7 percent this year.
This as the region suffers massive job losses, which the ILO now estimates at 81 million. Most of these affected workers are women and young people.
The mass displacement could have been worse if the affected governments had not implemented the necessary measures to “help companies retain workers”.
“Given growing evidence that social protection and employment policies save jobs and incomes, the hope is that the crisis will generate more permanent and greater investment in the elements needed to boost resilience and promote a more people-centered future of work. people, ”Sara said. Elder, Senior Economist at the ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and lead author of the report.
