Manila – Institute for Labor Studies (ILS) researchers Bernard Paul M. Mangulabnan and John Emmanuel V. Villanueva were part of the distinguished panelists and moderators in the recently-concluded ASEAN Inter-Ministerial Forum on the Implementation of the ASEAN Declaration on Promoting Green Jobs for Equity and Inclusive Growth in ASEAN Community, which was held online last October 7-9.

The three-day meet, which was hosted by the Ministry of Human Resources, Malaysia and co-hosted by the International Labour Organization, aimed to accelerate collaboration and cooperation across ASEAM Member States (AMS) in initiating and achieving the actions under the Declaration.

Mr. Mangulabnan, a Senior Labor and Employment Officer of the Advocacy and Publications Division (APD) and Mr. Villanueva, also a Senior Labor and Employment Officer from the Employment Research Division (ERD) joined AMS representatives who hailed from their respective labor ministries and are known as policy experts in the field of Green Jobs in the region.

The high-level forum was divided into five sessions to strategically break down and address various issues and create actionable development plans relative to the promotion of sustainable Green Jobs throughout the ASEAN Region. These include: Session 1 – Findings from the Regional Study on Green Jobs in ASEAN; Session 2 – Sectoral opportunities for green jobs; Session 3 – Panel session and group work: Identifying gaps between demand and supply for green jobs and policy options; Session 4 – Expert presentation on UN Climate Action for Jobs Initiative; and Session 5 – Initiatives of ASEAN Sectoral Bodies Contributing to Promotion of Green Jobs.

Mr. Villanueva served as part of the three-man panel for Session 3 on Day 2 joining Mr. Chuop Narath, Deputy Director General Department of Labour, Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training of Cambodia, and Mr. Lee Chung Wei, Divisional Director of Workplace Policy and Strategy, Ministry of Manpower of Singapore. He discussed “The Green Jobs Initiative: Promoting Decent Work for Environmentally Sustainable Philippines,” where he gave an overview of the National Green Jobs Human Resource Development (HRD) Plan, along with the incentives provided under the Green Jobs Act (RA 10771), and its correlative Supply-Chain Policy Approach.

Mr. Mangulabnan served as a moderator and rapporteur for Group 1 under the same session where they addressed important policy questions relative to identifying the determinants of the demand and supply of green jobs, including the policies/practices that are in place under AMS to stimulate demand and supply. He also reported on the best practices that would stimulate demand and supply for green jobs, including the regional knowledge sharing and dialogue priorities for green jobs policy.