East Asia and Pacific

This report assesses the damaging impacts of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic on youth employment in Asia and the Pacific and recommends critical policy responses.

This report examines the scope, potential benefits, and challenges of digital platforms in Asia and the Pacific. It proposes measures and policies to help maximize social and economic gains while alleviating adverse effects.

This study explores how the centres of vocational excellence (CoVEs) implement their autonomous role in public-private partnerships (PPPs), and the specific features and benefits of CoVEs’ collaborations in PPPs for vocational education and skills development.

The paper presents a qualitative case study of individuals who were all trained to be online freelancers using digital “gig” work platforms (e.g., Upwork) by “Virtualahan,” a social enterprise based in the Philippines. The findings indicate that online technology-facilitated employment has broader implications than an improved financial situation. Employment through online technology increased the informants self-confidence and how their families perceive them. 

With rapid technological growth, there is an increased opportunity to better link digital finance and business platforms for young entrepreneurs, especially in developing countries. This report provides trends related to youth entrepreneurship and financial inclusion in South Asia and South East Asia based on results from Findex and Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) survey data and qualitative insights from an online survey of 64 young entrepreneurs.

This report summarizes emerging evidence on the formation of cognitive, behavioral and technical skills. What does this mean for Vietnam’s education and training system? This report proposes a holistic skills strategy for Vietnam which looks at today’s workforce as much as the future workforce. 
 

This study presents new evidence from employer and household surveys on the role of socio-emotional skills—as well as more traditional cognitive and technical skills—in the Philippine labor market. The Philippines is still at an early stage in terms of its ability to measure and develop socioemotional skills.

In partnership with Philippine Department of Education, the World Bank conducted a series of assessments of the Alternative Learning System ( for out-of-school youth and adults). This policy note summarizes the empirical evidence obtained from these assessments and other program data and presents policy options to increase the effectiveness of the such programs.