SHAPING THE FUTURE HOW CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS CAN POWER HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

FIGURE 2.16:
A policy framework to guide the demographic dividend
Creating more
and better jobs,
combined with good
governance and
macroeconomic
stability, is
the first step
boost savings, among individuals and in terms
of public revenues. These can be channelled into
business growth, expanded infrastructure and
social expenditures, and more robust pension
schemes. Savings need to be effectively injected
into markets, however. Public budget surpluses
need to be wisely invested.
Figure 2.16 charts a general three-step path
for the demographic dividend to accelerate human
development. The following pages consider
supportive policies in four broad areas: creating
more jobs, improving their quality, emphasizing
workers’ rights and putting savings to work.
There are challenges and barriers to overcome,
and new opportunities to explore.
decades, many Asia-Pacific countries will face
even greater challenges than they do now in
terms of creating sufficient employment. More
focus needs to be on specific policies that will
create decent jobs and ensure the benefits of
growth reach everyone.
Job growth is given impetus when countries
FIGURE 2.17:
Higher growth alone has not produced
more jobs
PURSUE PRO-EMPLOYMENT GROWTH
64
A first step towards capturing the demographic
dividend will be for the region to ensure economic
growth is creating more jobs. In 2015
and 2016 developing Asia-Pacific is projected
to grow at 6.2 percent, 21 far above the global
average. During 2000-2013, however, employment
growth languished between 1 percent to
3 percent (Figure 2.17). As millions of new
entrants flood the labour market in the coming
Source: Based on ILO 2015a.