It is clear from data that worker movements in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), like elsewhere, are dominated by unskilled and semiskilled workers. It is also well-known that movements of these types of workers are dominated by irregular migration mainly because of lack of...

The Philippines is at a crossroad. It can choose to continue to follow current unrealistic policies that despite good intentions have been shown to be actually detrimental to the poor. Or, it can elect to try another development path to get a better chance at reducing poverty. This study...

This paper reports on the results of the review of the two major scholarship programs of TESDA, namely: (a) the Training for Work Scholarship Program (TWSP); and (b) the Private Education Student Financial Assistance (PESFA). The two scholarship programs account for 73 percent of the number of...

This paper reviews the Philippine international labor migration management infrastructure using Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) framework. Thirty years of government experience in managing high-volume labor migration has resulted to a network of institutions and policies dedicated to promote...

The study reviews small-scale gold mining in the Philippines and economically assesses mercury pollution and other development problems in the industry. The end purpose is to suggest measures to address the problems and promote better environmental and overall management of small-scale mining....

This paper demonstrates how family size can be an important contributor to poverty in the Philippines. It examines one of the mechanisms behind this link by focusing on the relation between number of children and the decision to seek a job and parents' wage earnings. It surveys the international...

This paper shows how large family size can be an important contributor to poverty in the Philippines. It examines one of the mechanisms behind this link by focusing on the relation between number of children and school attendance of children 6 to 24 years old. It surveys the international...

This paper presents one of the few empirical estimates of the impact of globalization, here represented by trade flows, on employment level and structure using Philippine data. Using both aggregate and sub-industry level manufacturing data, the paper shows that increases in the propensity to...

This paper looks at the interaction of poverty, fertility preferences and family planning practice in the Philippines using the series of nationally representative Family Planning Surveys conducted annually since 1999 augmented by census and other survey data. Its contribution lies on providing...

This paper shows how large family size can be an important contributor to household poverty. It presents results from recent research by the author using nationally representative household survey data that demonstrate clearly how large family size can contribute to poverty and vulnerability...