THE world has become a community of nations competing with each other in the area of economic and social progress, which at this stage of development of human society have become synonymous with advancement in information technology and innovation.
It is against this backdrop that Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, chief of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), spoke before researchers and scientists at a conference recently.
At the 2025 Annual Scientific Conference and the 92nd General Membership Assembly of the National Research Council of the Philippines, Balisacan said the Philippines should adopt more robust policies that promote human capital development, technology adaptation, innovation, and creation of high-quality jobs to achieve sustained, long-term economic growth.
The NEDA chief noted the great and expansive opportunities opened to the workforce and the general public, by artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. Computer systems, robotics, AI and other technological capabilities are everywhere in the world, edging out many Filipino workers whose skills have been rendered obsolete by the fast wheels of progress.
Balisacan is on the right track in pointing out that government policies should keep pace with the demands of innovation, but how to jump from his motherhood statements to actual educational and skills training policies is the great hurdle.
We share the NEDA chief’s concern that both artificial intelligence and robotics pose significant risks as industries automate tasks and low-skilled workers are displaced. The government will have a hard time looking for jobs that these displaced workers can adequately perform.
“Without policy changes, the Philippines may face increased distress, disasters, slow progress and widening inequality,” said Balisacan.
To achieve long-term economic growth, Balisacan said, education and skills development would be needed to enhance productivity and create better employment opportunities. In other words, the Philippines’ human capital should be honed and prepared for the unforgiving competition in the outside world.
How the Philippines can scale up its education system and train technologically prepared graduates needed by the industries appears to be insurmountable at this time. What we need is to learn how poor and backward nations in our part of the world were able to transform themselves into leaders of technology and innovation in just a few decades.
In this regard, the innovative models of China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam all highlight the all-of-government support to startups, fledgling industries and IT ventures. The Philippines might be able to learn one or two things from these economies on how to ride the wave of technological change.
China’s transformation from a backward economy of imitation to a robust nation of innovation was attributed by experts to the policy of opening its markets and the whole Chinese society to the world. But more than this, China mobilized its universities, science laboratories and research establishments, and relevant government agencies especially local officials in supporting scientists, inventors and entrepreneurs. This is exactly the same strategy adopted by Indonesia.
The Philippines might want to learn from these neighbors.
