Malacañang on Tuesday said the government will continue efforts to create more quality jobs and strengthen livelihood support after the country’s employment figures improved in April.
Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the administration is committed to sustaining the employment gains recorded during the month and further reducing the number of jobless Filipinos.
Citing government labor data, Castro said the unemployment rate eased to 4.7 percent in April, equivalent to around 2.4 million unemployed Filipinos. This was lower than the 5.8 percent jobless rate recorded in March.
The employment rate also slightly improved to 95.3 percent, or 48.89 million employed Filipinos, from 95 percent in the previous month.
“Dapat po tayong laging maging positibo dahil hindi naman po tumitigil ang gobyerno sa pagtatrabaho,” Castro said during a Palace briefing.
She said the government would continue rolling out programs aimed at generating productive and decent work, as well as livelihood assistance for the unemployed and for Filipinos repatriated from other countries.
Quoting Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Castro said the country faced several challenges in recent months, but Filipinos continued working while the government pursued interventions to support employment.
“Kahit medyo nag-increase po ang employment rate, patuloy pa rin po ang ating gobyerno sa paglilikha po ng de-kalidad na trabaho at pagbibigay ng mga livelihood projects sa ating mga kababayan,” she said.
Castro also said Acting Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino has assured that the government remains focused on jobs, social protection, and improved public services.
She said the administration would continue efforts to strengthen the skills and capabilities of Filipinos, from education to employment, to make them more competitive in the labor market.
“Tuloy-tuloy po ang ating pamahalaan na makapagbigay ng magandang trabaho sa ating mga kababayan,” Castro said, quoting Tolentino.
The Palace also addressed a World Bank report warning that nearly three in 10 Filipinos are at risk of falling into poverty.
Castro said the government recognizes the need to improve job creation, strengthen social protection, and deliver better public services to prevent vulnerable families from slipping into poverty.
Reading Balisacan’s statement, Castro said the updated Philippine Development Plan 2023 to 2028 recognizes that many Filipino families remain exposed to employment, health, and climate-related shocks.
“The government’s thrust is to grow the economy while creating high-quality jobs, investing in skills and other productivity-enhancing measures, addressing gaps in social protection systems and building national and local state capacity toward accessible, resilient public services,” the statement read.
The Palace said the World Bank report also recognized the Philippines as one of the world’s fast-growing middle-income economies, with growth that has been broadly pro-poor.
It noted that the country’s poverty rate fell to 15.5 percent in 2023, equivalent to 17.5 million Filipinos, while acknowledging the Philippines’ goal of reaching upper middle-income status in the near future.
Castro said the administration would continue building on these gains by pursuing policies that expand employment, reduce vulnerability, and improve the lives of Filipino families.