SBR- Content.pmd - INBO

5 - Peoples of the MekongFigure 9. Unemployment (% economically active population), 2000-2001Sources: ADB 2002; ADB 2001c; NSC 1997; Alpha Research Co. 2000; UNDP 2002; UNDP-Viet Nam 2002Underemployment is a significant, but not well-documented problem. In the LMB, it is more commonin rural than in urban areas. t In Viet Nam, widespread underemployment occurs in the agriculturalsector, where people work an average of 21 hours per week. 105 Underemployment in the MekongDelta is similar to national rates (25 percent), while it is lower (18.1 percent) in the Central Highlands. 106Income. Household incomes vary widely across the basin. For Thailand and Viet Nam, the LMBhas provided the natural resources that have spurred economic development within each country,but has not received the benefits. As a consequence, there is a significant and widening gap betweenincomes within the basin and parts of respective countries that lie outside the basin, and among LMBcountries themselves. 107 Incomes u in Thailand are three times higher than those in Viet Nam andmore than four times greater than those in Cambodia and Lao PDR.There are also significant differences within countries, between regions and in urban and ruralareas. Since the financial crisis in 1997, the North and Northeast Regions of Thailand have experiencedsignificant unemployment and the return of workers who have lost their jobs in urban areas. 108Urban incomes in Viet Nam are nearly four times higher than rural incomes. In Cambodia and LaoPDR, urban incomes are approximately twice the national average. 109Incomes in the Mekong Delta and the Central Highlands are, respectively, 20 and 40 percent belowthe national average. 110 Income levels remain low in Viet Nam, despite strong economic growthduring the 1990s. This is due to very high population densities. 111 As a consequence, there is lessarable land per capita compared with other LMB countries. As well, benefits from foreign investmentand exchange earnings need to be spread over a much larger population.In general, women tend to work at low-paying, more menial jobs. As a consequence, their overallincome levels average 60-75 percent of men’s incomes. Data available for Cambodia and Lao PDRsuggest that non-agricultural wage levels for women are about 80 percent of those of men, except inurban areas where women’s income more nearly equal men’s. 112 In Thailand, women working in thepublic sector tend to have income levels nearly equal to men, but they earn only about 75 percent ofmen’s wages in private sector, non-agricultural jobs. 113 In Viet Nam, women’s wages overall are 72percent of men’s, but only 62 percent of men’s in the agriculture sector. 114tUnderemployment refers to people who do not work during part of the year or who are unable to workregularly for more than 35 hours per week (Ministry of Planning, 2000)uIncomes expressed as PPP$ GDP per capita. Purchasing power parity (PPP$) rates of exchange take accountof price differences in different countries, allowing more accurate comparison of income levels.63