‘Be
your own boss’
MANILA - Nacionalista Party standard-bearer
Sen. Manny Villar urged the seven million Filipinos reportedly
underemployed to take up the challenge of entrepreneurship.
“They have the desire and they have
the time. They have to fuel that drive with lots of hard work
and perseverance to achieve success. Nothing beats being your
own boss,” Villar said.
Villar issued the statement in reaction to
a National Statistics Office (NSO) report of lower unemployment
rate, but higher underemployed Filipinos in January.
Employed persons who express desire to have
additional hours of work in their present job or to have additional
job, or to have a new job with longer working hours are considered
underemployed, the report said.
The January 2010 Labor Force Survey showed
that employment rate slightly increased to 92.7 percent from
92.3 percent of January last year.
Underemployment, meanwhile, rose to 19.7 percent
compared to 18.2-percent January 2009 figure. This is equivalent
to an estimated 7.1 million Filipinos considered to be unemployed.
“I’ve always maintained that a
legion of entrepreneur warriors is the key to our economic
future.
And that applies to all cross section of our
society – men, women, and even new graduates who will
be willing to take charge of their future and maximize their
potential. We have to develop and nurture a culture of entrepreneurship,”
Villar added.
If elected President, Villar said his administration
will prioritize an entrepreneur-friendly and entrepreneur-ready
environment, which will include funneling credit to small
and medium-scale enterprises.
“The next administration should ensure
that all available resources, assistance, expertise and support
are made available to them – through micro-financing
and other funding programs, through infrastructure support,
and most of all through proper guidance and governance,”
he added.
Of the seven million underemployed persons,
around four million were reported as visibly underemployed
or working less than 40 hours during the reference week. Those
working for 40 hours or more accounted for about 40 percent.
Most of the underemployed were working in
the agriculture sector (46.7 percent) and services sector
(39.0 percent). The underemployed in the industry sector accounted
for 14.3 percent./PN
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