SHAPING THE FUTURE HOW CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS CAN POWER HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

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Investing in education and health helps people to realize their full potential 188 cation of loans to the most productive economic sectors, and extend more loans to small and medium enterprises, since larger corporations in many cases can access international financial markets. Another priority is to lay the foundation for pension systems in anticipation of inevitable ageing. Investing in these systems while the workforce is still large means that as workers age and withdraw from the labour force, there will be sufficient resources for them to enjoy a decent standard of life. While there are different options to expand pension coverage, contributory pension systems may be more sustainable over the longer term as they encourage the current population to save, easing pressures on public budgets. UNLOCKING <strong>THE</strong> POTENTIAL OF <strong>THE</strong> NEXT GENERATION Asia-Pacific’s children and young people will be the driving force behind demographic transition and human development in the next few decades. Deliberate measures and scaled-up investments need to be in place to enhance their education, health and passage from school to work, as affirmed in Agenda 2030, where the international community committed to providing children and youth with a nurturing environment for the full realization of their rights and capabilities. 8 Public services for youth need to be high in quality and accessible to all, and young people need to be more systematically included in the decisions that affect their lives. Raise public investment in education to international standards. Asia-Pacific as a region has made commendable progress in primary education and attaining gender parity in education. Greater effort is needed to expand the availability of secondary and tertiary education, however, as these levels produce the skills many countries need to cultivate an increasingly productive workforce and advance to higher levels of human development. The region needs to invest in the quality of education, at all levels, with a starting point being to reach international standards for budget allocations to education. One priority for additional resources could be to improve school facilities and faculty, particularly in rural areas and for marginalized communities, as a pathway to equity in opportunities later in life. A comprehensive review of curricula and an assessment of pedagogical approaches may be important, as highlighted in Sri Lanka’s 2014 National Human Development Report on Youth and Development, including to ensure that these meet the needs and expectations of students, and prepare a strong foundation for them to flourish as adults. The success of East Asian countries in providing quality education may offer lessons, as students there regularly top global rankings under the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Provide universal health services and nutrition. Though Asia-Pacific as a whole has fared well on vital health issues such as improving access to immunization, reducing infant mortality, curbing stunting among children and improving maternal health, huge health and malnutrition challenges still persist. The Sustainable Development Goals now call for universal health care for all nations at all stages of development. Though priorities for action may differ among countries, this implies that health services need to be available to everyone, as well as affordable, efficient and of good quality. They should be comprehensive, covering not only physical and mental well-being, but also social, economic and cultural factors that influence health. Current underfunding of health services underscores the need for a boost in resources. Carrying the world’s highest burden of child malnutrition, South Asia should make greater investments in reducing it. Most countries in Asia-Pacific as a whole, particularly those with a growing youth bulge, need to pay greater attention to adolescent health. A youth-friendly health policy is central if young people are to learn healthy behaviours, curtail substance abuse and tobacco use, become more physically active, realize their sexual and reproductive health rights, and avoid HIV and obesity. Strengthen the transition from school to work.
This is an urgent priority in a region where an astonishing one-third of youth are neither in school nor the labour market. Part of the reason is that youth with college degrees are unable to find commensurate jobs. To rectify this situation, countries need to ensure that educational systems prepare youth with skills demanded by the labour market. They should also more systematically assess the demand and supply of graduates against anticipated labour market needs. A shift in emphasis towards education offering relevant skills and alert to labour market demands will produce a higher quality and more employable workforce. Opportunities for internships or apprenticeships for young people could be created and incentives provided to employers to hire more of them. Vocational training will help them explore new avenues for work. Germany’s dual vocational training system, which attracts two-thirds of high school graduates, provides an excellent example of how a well-designed work-study programme can help train students in disciplines with clear market demand, and thereby minimize mismatches between available jobs and skills. With rapid growth in new industries and technology, and increased innovation across Asia-Pacific, there are many new opportunities for talented young people. But governments will also have to engage the private sector and civil society in more meaningful ways to ensure that these translate into decent employment. Support youth in employment and entrepreneurship. Centres to provide youth with career counselling, information and legal advice are still nascent in the region. Further developing these services could assist in managing challenges related to job searches, informal jobs and migration both to urban areas and abroad. Among other options, they can provide job matching assistance, offer training and mentoring aligned with current labour market needs, arrange for internships or apprenticeships, and even impose sanctions to encourage people to take jobs. They can also help proactively counter gender and other forms of discrimination, and can conduct targeted outreach to youth who are marginalized, recognizing as well that they may require tailored support. Information and advice on migration specifically targeted to youth could do more to protect them from exploitative recruiting agencies. In general, support services should be integrated within well-designed, appropriately funded labour market policies. These policies should make youth employment a major goal, and aim at overcoming information gaps, improving youth employability and stimulating demand for young workers. Nurturing youth leadership and entrepreneurial talents can stimulate innovation and creativity, and open new doors for them to transition into a successful adult life. Youth Young people can offer new insights and pioneering solutions BOX 6.1: Crowdfunding—a new tool to stimulate jobs and innovation among youth In recent years, crowdfunding has enabled young people to raise capital for businesses from different sources online, rather than relying on traditional options such as families and banks. In Singapore, when sisters Hani and Aisah Dalduri decided to scale up their textile printing business, Fictive Fingers, they launched a crowdfunding campaign by writing their story, sharing photos of their products and encouraging supporters to contribute in return for a range of rewards. The sisters readily exceeded their funding target of $3,600. When asked why they took the crowdfunding route, they said the campaign wasn’t all about money. They were also drawn by the opportunity to reach out to a community. Asia is currently witnessing exponential growth in crowdfunding, to the tune of $3.4 billion in 2014. Given that countries in the region have many technically savvy young people, crowdfunding is an obvious tool for them to realize their full potential. Credible crowdfunding systems, however, still require support, including forward-thinking regulations, effective technology and the kinds of cultural shifts encouraging more people to invest in them. Source: CNBC.com 2014, Crowdsourcing.org 2015, World Bank 2013. 189
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ASIA-PACIFIC HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPO
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ASIA-PACIFIC HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPO
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FOREWORD We live in times of great
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Asia-Pacific H
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Table of Contents Foreword iii Pref
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1.15 Population age-composition is
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Acronyms ADB Asian Development Bank
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Overview SHAPING THE FUTURE: HOW CH
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HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN ASIA-PACIFIC:
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FIGURE 2: Wealthier countries tend
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a strong emphasis on protecting wor
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could provide job matching assistan
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Asia-Pacific leave the workforce at
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WHAT’S AHEAD IN THIS REPORT This
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Chapter 1 HOW CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS
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sustainable, reaching everyone whil
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FIGURE 1.1: The Human Development I
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TABLE 1.1: Asia-Pacific still has l
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married couples to have children, a
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FIGURE 1.5: Population pyramids in
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FIGURE 1.8: The median age is high
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FIGURE 1.10: Disparities in fertili
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Improved overall human development
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TABLE 1.5: Countries in Asia-Pacifi
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“When relatively large generation
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38 Having fewer dependents on worki
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40 In developed Asia- Pacific, the
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TABLE 1.6: Demographic dividends fl
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44
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2. MORE PEOPLE AT WORK: THE FOUNDAT
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encouraged labour-intensive industr
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FIGURE 2.3: Peaks within subregions
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A DEMOGRAPHIC RETURN FOR HUMAN DEVE
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BOX 2.1: Women bear a larger burden
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FIGURE 2.8: Growth in labour produc
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WHAT’S BEEN LEARNED IN CHINA, JAP
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FIGURE 2.13: Japan is past its work
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FIGURE 2.15: Thailand still has tim
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make this a key aim of national dev
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investment climate, as well as enco
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TABLE 2.4: Shares of workers in the
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Even before leaving home, migrant w
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Promote health and safety at work:
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BOX 2.8: Malaysia transforms an ind
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of resilient infrastructure are joi
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Chapter 3 NURTURING CHILDREN, UNLOC
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Asia-Pacific is home to 1.7 billion
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Commendable progress in education m
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Quality primary education mitigates
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In most Asia-Pacific countries, sec
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Strong tertiary education is a buil
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FIGURE 3.3: Access to tertiary educ
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94 TABLE 3.9: Youth illiteracy has
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TABLE 3.11: Child mortality rates b
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BOX 3.7: Malnutrition and disabilit
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Despite social and economic progres
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FIGURE 3.8: The share of youth who
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104 Young migrants are highly vulne
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as an important challenge. But they
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TABLE 3.15: Some countries with lar
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Immunization saves children’s liv
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BOX 3.10: Germany’s vocational tr
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BOX 3.12: Partnering with youth in
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4. AGEING SOCIETIES: NEW OPPORTUNIT
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FIGURE 4.1: Asia-Pacific is one of
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TABLE 4.1: East Asia is the oldest
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BOX 4.2: Responses to poverty among
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BOX 4.3: A plan of action for older
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FIGURE 4.9: Per capita health-care
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BOX 4.5: China moves towards univer
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TABLE 4.3: Social pensions are an i
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FIGURE 4.12: Pension replacement ra
Page 151 and 152: BOX 4.7: Increasing links between p
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Page 155 and 156: ment bodies, encourage regular inte
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Page 159 and 160: help coordinate the work of other g
Page 161 and 162: for older people. Many advanced cou
Page 163 and 164: action. Free public transport, and
Page 165: Chapter 5 TAPPING THE HUMAN DYNAMIS
Page 168 and 169: In the last 30 years, Asia-Pacific
Page 170 and 171: FIGURE 5.3: Even countries with few
Page 172 and 173: FIGURE 5.6: Most people will contin
Page 174 and 175: 160 Social, cultural and economic i
Page 176 and 177: The benefits of urbanization have n
Page 178 and 179: BOX 5.2: Pioneering urban poverty r
Page 180 and 181: vehicles on the road. Beijing issue
Page 182 and 183: Municipal governments in Asia-Pacif
Page 184 and 185: TABLE 5.4: Revenue mobilization opt
Page 186 and 187: 172 City governments need to have t
Page 188 and 189: Investing in essential infrastructu
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Page 192 and 193: BOX 5.9: The Republic of Korea emba
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Page 197 and 198: 6. AN AGENDA FOR ACTION: SHAPING TH
Page 199 and 200: Development Report argues, decent w
Page 201: with ministries overseeing youth, e
Page 205 and 206: SUSTAINING HUMAN DEVELOPMENT ACROSS
Page 207 and 208: plan automatically enrols people in
Page 209 and 210: BOX 6.3: Developing Delhi’s metro
Page 213 and 214: End Notes CHAPTER 1 1. UNFPA 2014b.
Page 215 and 216: 63. WHO 2014b. 64. UNFPA 2012. 65.
Page 217: produces 40 percent of total econom
Page 220 and 221: 206 The Asia Foundation. 2013. “T
Page 222 and 223: 208 CODI (Community Organizations D
Page 224 and 225: 210 Global Migration Group. 2014.
Page 226 and 227: 212 Janwani. 2010. “Annual Report
Page 228 and 229: 214 ———. 2012a. OECD Employme
Page 230 and 231: 216 ———. 2011. “Follow-up t
Page 232 and 233: 218 York. [www.unfpa.org/sites/defa
Page 234 and 235: ———. 2012c. Malaysia Economic
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Page 240 and 241: TABLE 2: Trends in the Human Develo
Page 242 and 243: TABLE 4: Gender Inequality Index 22
Page 244 and 245: TABLE 6: Trends in income poverty,
Page 246 and 247: TABLE 8: Fertility rate and crude d
Page 248 and 249: TABLE 10: Trends and share of child
Page 250 and 251: TABLE 12: Trends and share of young
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TABLE 14: Trends and share of older
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TABLE 16: Education indicators and
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TABLE 17: Health indicators 242
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TABLE 18: Employment and unemployme
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TABLE 19: International trade, fina
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ABOUT ASIA-PACIFIC HUMAN DEVELOPMEN
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