Phl lags behind regional peers in human capital dev't

Lagging behind its peers in the region in terms of human capital indicators, the Philippines has a 20to 25-year window to develop its human capital to take advantage of the demographic shift, according to the World Bank.

- LOUELLA DESIDERIO

In a report titled "The Philippines Human Capital Review: Investing in the Early Years to Boost Human Potential," the World Bank said the Philippines is on the cusp of attaining upper middle-income country status by 2026, given the Filipinos' rising income.

Despite this, Ndiame Diop, World Bank country director for Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand, said the country is still lagging behind its neighbors in terms of human capital indicators, with its human capital index (HCI) estimated at 0.52 - indicating that a child born in 2020 can achieve only about half of productive potential by the age of 18.

The Philippines' HCI is well below those of neighboring upper middleincome countries such as Malaysia and Thailand, which both have a 0.61 HCI.

Diop said the Philippines' HCI is also lower than that of lower middle-income peers such as Indonesia's 0.54 and Vietnam's 0.69.