EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

South Asia Experts’ Summit

Dialogues on
the COVID-19
Future of Work
28–30 September 2021
 EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Background 1

The Event 2

Session Summaries 4

High-Level Panel on the COVID-19 Future of Work (28 Sept 2021) 4

Thematic Session on the Blue and Green Economy (29 Sept 2021) 8

Thematic Session on 21st Century Jobs (29 Sept 2021) 13

Thematic Session on the Informal Sector (30 Sept 2021) 19

Closing Plenary (30 Sept 2021) 23

Experts’ Recommendations 27

Annex A: Detailed Agenda 33

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EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

BACKGROUND
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, technological advances brought by the Fourth
Industrial Revolution (4IR) had already disrupted the world of work. New sets of skills and
competencies were in demand; jobs were lost, created, and reprofiled; and new pathways
for commercial activities were unveiled. At the same time, inequalities had been
exacerbated, with automation resulting in the loss of low-skilled work that had previously
lifted many people out of poverty. Women, young people, and other marginalized groups
were disproportionately affected, and the digital divide among and within countries
widened.

Nevertheless, the impact of these challenges pale in comparison to the effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. COVID-19 has led to lost jobs, reduced working hours,
and heightened economic insecurities at a massive scale, which a growing body of
knowledge shows is affecting young people much more than adults.1 In South Asia, the
youth unemployment rate was 22.3%2 and the youth not in education, employment,
or training (NEET) rate was 29.5%3 pre-COVID. Even then, adolescent girls and young
women were disproportionately excluded and now comprise the majority of those
who have dropped out of the labor force or training systems altogether due to COVID.4
Statistics show that the labour force participation rate of women in South Asia has been
decreasing ever since 2005, with India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan at the bottom of the
statistics in the region.5 Among these countries, India was getting worse over time, even
before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to this, ILO reports that in an analysis of the school-to-work transition for
60 countries, the share of young men who successfully transitioned into employment
exceeds that of young women by a wide margin.6 One of the largest gender gaps was
found in Pakistan (34%), which is also among the countries with the lowest female labour
force participation rate in the region.

Where young people are engaged in work, the decency of these opportunities in
South Asia is also a challenge. Many young workers are engaged in informal jobs.
Pre-COVID-19, it is estimated that informal employment in South Asia accounts for
87.8 percent of total employment7 -- with India having almost 90 percent of 500 million
workers in the informal sector, Bangladesh having 85 percent of the total labor force in

1 International Labour Organization. (2020). Global Employment Trends for Youth 2020
2 The World Bank Data. (2019). Unemployment, youth total (% of total labor force ages 15-24)
3 The World Bank Data. (2019). Share of youth not in education, employment or training, total (%
of youth population)
4 International Labour Organization. (2021). How women are left behind in the quest for decent
work for all
5 The World Bank Data. (2019). Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population
ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate)
6 ILOSTAT. (2020). Transition from school to work remains a difficult process for youth
7 International Labour Organization. (2018). Women and Men in the Informal Economy: A
Statistical Picture.

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informal employment, and Pakistan with 72 percent of jobs outside agriculture in the
informal sector.8

As countries in Asia and the Pacific continue to deal with subsequent outbreaks and
plan for their recovery, changes in the world of work are not going unnoticed. Some of
the latest research concur that the future will be shaped predominantly by the COVID-19
pandemic and by climate change.9 For instance, McKinsey Global Institute (2021) finds
that the disruptions in 2020 that have resulted in lost jobs, reduced working hours and
heightened economic insecurities for households and businesses the world over have
similarly accelerated the rise of remote work, e-commerce, and automation, with almost
a quarter of the workforce in eight countries able to work remotely and effectively for
3-5 days a week.10 While the use of 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies have
accelerated the creation of new opportunities (especially through remote working), the
risk of job displacement for low-skilled workers and routine and manual labor has also
increased.11

Throughout these changes, adolescents and young people are and will be significantly
affected. Adolescents and youth would either benefit from timely and positive strategic
policy decisions of governments and business leaders or face heightened exclusion and
vulnerabilities, especially due to climate change and the ongoing skills and employability
crisis.12 Therefore, taking the necessary actions to prepare young people for the future
of work is critical. Efforts that emphasize enhancing their digital skills and promoting
lifelong learning are just as important.

If countries in Asia-Pacific, which are home to at least 60 percent of the world’s youth
population, are to embark on a sustainable and inclusive path to COVID-19 recovery,
tapping into the demographic dividend that adolescents and youth potentially offer needs
to become an urgent priority.

THE EVENT
Recognizing the need for enhanced strategic engagement around adolescent skills and
employability, UNICEF organized the Experts’ Summit on the Future of Work, a 3-day
event held on 28-30 September 2021. The summit convened over 50 thought leaders,
youth, practitioners and experts from governments, development institutions, academia,
and civil society organizations for a multi-stakeholder policy dialogue on the future
of work for adolescents and youth in the Asia-Pacific region. The event highlighted
challenges and opportunities brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and the way

8 Idris, I. (2020). Impact of COVID-19 on child labor in South Asia. page 7.

9 See ‘McKinsey Global Institute. (2021). The future of work after COVID-19’, ‘Parissoto, A.,
Elsheikhi, A., (2020). ILO Working Paper 20 - COVID-19, jobs and the future of work in the LDCs:
A (disheartening) preliminary account.’,
10 The eight countries featured in the study includes China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Spain,
UK, and U.S. See ‘McKinsey Global Institute. (2021). The future of work after COVID-19.’
11 Jones-Renaud, L., Silva, E.., Hernando, R., Kuriyama, C., Loh, K. (2020). APEC Policy Support
Unit Policy Brief No. 38 - Women, COVID-19 and the Future of Work in APEC.
12 ILO. (2021). ILO Monitor: COVID-19 and the world of work. 7th edition

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forward, especially in skilling and preparing adolescents and young people for green13
and blue jobs14 and 21st-century jobs15, as well as addressing issues surrounding the
prevalence of work informality.

The 3-day event sought insights into the impact of COVID on the future of work as well
as policy recommendations for a future where all adolescents and youth have equitable
access to employable skills and decent work in the future. Across the thematic issues, the
event intended to explore ideas related to the following sub-themes:

• Gender-transformative programming,

• Inclusion of adolescents and young people, especially marginalized groups, and

• Meaningful adolescent and youth engagement in build-back-better processes

and future of work-related preparations

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES OF THE EVENT

1. To provide an overview of the state of play for skilling and employability of
adolescents and young people in Asia and Pacific countries, highlighting
challenges, opportunities, and way forward;

2. To identify new pathways for collaboration among stakeholders,

including with adolescents and young people, in planning, designing and
implementation of Future of Work-oriented interventions;

3. To facilitate discussion and debate on the work outlook for the following
sectors: (a) blue and green economy; (b) 21st-century jobs; and (c) informal
sector

4. To showcase promising initiatives and program models that:

a. Support/ed training and employment systems-strengthening, both

during and after the COVID-19 pandemic through innovation and
technological solutions;

b. Demonstrated gender-transformative and inclusive practices for skilling

and preparing marginalized adolescents and youth for the world of work;
and

13 Green jobs are decent jobs that contribute to preserve or restore the environment, be they in
traditional sectors such as manufacturing and construction, or in new, emerging green sectors
such as renewable energy and energy efficiency. See ’ILO. (2016). What is a green job?’
14 The Blue Economy is sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved
livelihoods and jobs, while preserving the health of marine and coastal ecosystem. See ’World
Bank. (2017). What is the Blue Economy?’
15 21st century jobs put an increased emphasis on science, technology, engineering, arts, and
mathematics, and rely on so-called 21st century skills such as: creativity and innovation, critical
thinking/problem solving/decision making, learning to learn/metacognition, communication,
collaboration (teamwork), information literacy, ICT literacy, citizenship (local and global), life
and career skills, and personal and social responsibility (including cultural awareness and
competence). See ‘Deloitte. (2017). Catch the wave: The 21st-century career.’ and ‘Global
Partnership for Education. (2020). 21st Century Skills: What potential role for the Global
Partnership for Education? A Landscape Review.’

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c. Provide meaningful adolescent and youth engagement in practice in the

context of skills

This report summarizes the discussions from the sessions of the event. It includes
highlights from each panel discussion, as well as recommendations for stakeholders
working on the key themes. Annex A includes the detailed agenda of the event.

SESSION SUMMARIES

High-Level Panel on the COVID-19 Future of Work (28 Sept 2021)

At this opening session, a high-level panel consisting of representatives from UNICEF,

World Economic Forum, Generation Unlimited, International Labour Organization,
Accenture, Asian Development Bank, and JAAGO Foundation shared the latest trends
and data about the current global labor market and the impacts of the COVID-19
pandemic on opportunities for adolescents and young people in the region. They also
briefly discussed examples of initiatives, mechanisms and catalytic investments that
have been put in place to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: Decent Work
and Economic Growth. The session also featured a debate on young people’s access to
decent work given the decline in opportunities due to the pandemic.

Moderator and Speakers (in alphabetical order)

• Brajesh Panth, Chief of Education Sector Group, Sustainable Development and

Climate Change Department, Asian Development Bank
• Esha Farooque, Assistant Director for Operations, JAAGO Foundation
• Heidi Strawson, Director, Accenture Global Giving Foundation

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• Henrietta Fore, Executive Director, UNICEF

• Iris May Ellen Caluag, Meaningful Youth Engagement Specialist, ADB Youth for Asia
• John Barrett Trew, Education Specialist – Adolescent Skills and Employability,
UNICEF ROSA
• Karen Saez, Impact and Asia Pacific Community Manager, Global Shapers
Community, World Economic Forum
• Kevin Frey, CEO, Generation Unlimited

• Susana Puerto, Coordinator, Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth

Highlights from Session Discussion

A. Keynote Speakers
Keynote speakers, Karen Saez (WEF) and Kevin Frey (GenU), both
acknowledged that there were major changes in the job landscape
both during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. A “double
disruption scenario” is reportedly on-going, in which a pandemic-
spurred recession has added uncertainties that have already been
brought about by the 4th Industrial Revolution. Prior to the 2020
pandemic, there has been a shift from human to machines with
digitalized functions outnumbering office jobs, and an increased
demand for digital – and “human” – skills among current and future workers. “Human”
skills such as problem-solving, self-management, working with people, stress tolerance,
and the use of technology, are required for workers to qualify
and succeed in technology-related jobs.

At the same time, both speakers flagged the persistent

inequalities that hound education and training systems, and
which exacerbate employability outcomes for vulnerable
populations, including women, young workers, and other
minorities. The pandemic spotlighted a growing education and
digital divide, where certain populations struggled to access
technology and learning devices to learn online; and where
reduced employment prospects for lower-wage workers, women,
and younger workers, among others. To date, 346 million people are reportedly
without access to the Internet and devices for remote learning. Across regions, the
rate of people not in employment, education, or training (NEET) has risen for youth
much more than adults. Furthermore, among youth who are employed, 77% are in the
informal sector with limited prospects for social protection and decent work.

To prepare adolescents and youth to tide through these trends, the keynote speakers
emphasized the need to cultivate human skills which would not be easily replaced by
any algorithm or machines; enable young people to realize their own potential through
skilling and re-skilling efforts, and meaningful engagement in decision-making; and
leveraging public-private-youth partnerships to drive solutions at scale. Karen Saez
highlighted youth-led initiatives in India and Thailand which have demonstrate youth
efforts to promote resilience and recovery from the pandemic, despite the challenges
they face.

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B. Panelists

Building on the trends that the keynote speakers discussed,

Susana Puerto (ILO) began the panel discussion by
discussing how the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in
employment losses that derail progress for youth. Data from
countries show that youth employment has fallen by 10.3%
in 2020 as compared to adult employment, which only
decreased by 2.4%. A mental health crisis has also been
left in the wake of these losses, which results from the fear,
stress, and anxiety of losing loved ones and the worsening
economic uncertainties of the future.

Heidi Strawson (Accenture) stressed the important role the

private sector plays as global employers of workers with a stake
in ensuring quality talent are recruited, trained, and retained.
While acknowledging the need for skilled workers to adapt to
the fast-changing world of work, however, she also mentioned
the shared interdependency between corporations and
jobseekers, indicating a responsibility for employers to promote
diversity and sustainability in their operations. Post-pandemic,
employers must anticipate demands for flexibility and reinvent
themselves to remain attractive to workers, as well as embrace
the push for a green economy given the urgency to address climate change.

Brajesh Panth (ADB) pointed out that in order to enable

skilling employment systems to provide high skill equilibria,
governments must involve trainers, mobilize resources, and
enhance education for teachers and education sector leaders.
A balance is needed between formal education and long-term
skilling and upskilling of people entering the workforce as
this would promote resilience against the rapidly changing
nature of the world of work. Furthermore, for vulnerable
groups, financial and indirect forms of support, including the
provision of mental health programs and futures readiness,
would significantly strengthen employability outcomes of young people. He cited three
examples of innovative efforts in education, namely: an online platform created by
the Department of Education in the Philippines, which mobilizes teachers as module
developers and private sector to provide connectivity to
students; e-learning platforms in Indonesia, and employment
investment programs in Bangladesh.

Esha Farooque (JAAGO Foundation) concurred with other

panelists on the importance of comprehensive labor market
policies and improving the quality of education and training
programs for youth. Having worked with young migrants
who had returned to South Asia due to the loss of jobs and
employment prospects, Esha shared worsening mental
health issues with the region having the highest suicide rate

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for individuals ages 15-25 years old. Despite these challenges, Esha Farooque also
highlighted how youth have adapted and engaged themselves in digital learning to be
more prepared for the changing times. Nevertheless, she also flagged the importance
of having proper infrastructure to support youth employment and encourage safe and
inclusive working spaces for all.

C. Q&A Session

How do we facilitate the transfer of knowledge and technologies from developed

nations to developing nations who are slower in terms of the uptake in terms of
these practices or technologies?

(i) Reinforce the point of working in Public – Private and Global Coalitions who offer
decent jobs with the key intent what working needs or solutions must be put into
place;

(ii) Explore the advancement that these organizations and companies have as they
possess a vast range of cutting-edge skills that are needed, and people may learn
from; and

(iii) Explore the replication of assets and knowledge that is relevant in one
country. Notwithstanding cultural differences, the current skills remain universal
for employment. In some markets, it is fantastic to replicate tools or solutions in
different countries. (Heidi Strawson, Accenture)

Look at the need to structure these skills into basic, intermediate, and advanced
levels; and find providers and clear the platforms to see how these skills can be
transferred via educational institutions and other training establishments. (Brajesh
Panth, ADB)

The World Economic Forum highlighted the importance of resilience and stress
management as a skill. What are some effective strategies to build resilience, whose
responsibility is it to invest in resilience-building programs, and how do we measure
the success of such initiatives?

Education systems need to be able to build resilience among young workers that
will equip them with the necessary skills that they need to build resilience. It is a
shared responsibilities between educational institutions and the young people in
general that doesn’t only build the technical ones but also build the soft skills that
the youth need to establish to progress into the Future of Work. (Karen Saez, WEF)

From your work in the peace and jobs platform, what do you think is the biggest
advantage of the youth in terms of creating these competencies that they need for
their Future of Work?

Resilience not only comes with skills but also with a purpose-driven effort from
young people to tailor to the interventions that are present. The pandemic and
related challenges are a call for companies to integrate elements of psychosocial
support into their programs to boost young workers’ resilience in conducting their
work. Young people must know that they have a voice and that they have the right
to use it to their advantage. It is useful to find platforms and channels that will
encourage young people to have a voice in their own ways.

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Since the gig economy crosses economic and legal borders of different countries,
which should be the starting point in addressing social protection issues?

Informality is related to labor market transitions. The first job that a young person
would experience marks their pathway. If a person starts a job in the informal
economy, it is very likely that it will continue in the informal economy. That’s why
it’s important to place importance to that first job and be in the formal economy. The
pandemic has showed the vulnerability of people in the labor market. At the same
time, there are populations that need skill sets – companies need to move towards
facilitating trainings for these young people. (Susana Puerto, ILO)

Thematic Session on the Blue and Green Economy (29 Sept 2021)

Although the world is currently in crisis, the opportunity to reshape the foundations
of the global economy, prepare youth to thrive in the future of work, generate new
widespread prosperity, and lay the groundwork for a safer, cleaner, greener, and more
equitable world is within the world’s reach. To build a more just, inclusive, and resilient
economy, it is imperative that decision-makers invest in and re-skill human capital.11
With the challenges of COVID-19, the potential for green and blue economies poses
a model for economies to transform to greener, inclusive, and sustainable economic
strategies for rebuilding economies with social wellbeing and equity at its core.

In this thematic session, a panel was convened from UNICEF ROSA, Islamic
Development Bank (IsDB), UN Environmental Programme (UNEP), Republic of
Maldives, Climate Collective, Asian Development Bank (ADB), and World Wildlife
Fund (WWF). The speakers aimed to analyze the challenges and opportunities in
encouraging, skilling, and preparing adolescents and young people for green and blue
jobs in the South Asia region. Innovative solutions on green and blue jobs were also
featured, in addition to recommendations for meaningfully engaging adolescents and
youth in programs.

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Moderator and Speakers (in alphabetical order)

• Abdulla Naseer, Ministry of State for Environment, Climate Change and Technology,
Republic of Maldives
• En’am Malkawi, Lead Youth Empowerment Specialist, Islamic Development Bank
• Jui Joshi, Partner, Climate Collective
• Manisha Choudhary, India Partnership for Action on Green Economy Coordinator,
UN Environmental Programme
• Mohsen Gul, Climate Change Youth Specialist, ADB Youth for Asia
• Rab Nawaz, Conservation Director, World Wildlife Fund Pakistan

• Reis Lopez Rello, Climate Change Adviser, UNICEF ROSA

Highlights from Session Discussion

A. Keynote Speakers

Acknowledging the tendency of policies to

focus on the present more than the future,
as the first keynote speaker, Enam Malkawi
(IsDB) emphasized the need to rethink the tools
that inform policy processes, strive for policy
coherence, and to forecast rather than react on
issues. Policy coherence will be crucial when
promoting green jobs, which can be created
in any industry alongside efforts to “green”
economies. She also differentiated between green
literacy and green skills: the former referring to foundational knowledge and values
about the dynamics and relationships of human beings with the environment, and the
latter referring to either sustainability and resilience skills, or professional skills and
competencies.16 These skills should be complemented by soft skills training, which
support career advancement, increase job satisfaction, and improve job retention of
young people.

Concurring with the paradigm shift that Enam

Malkawi implied in her speech, the second keynote
speaker, Manisha Choudhary (UNEP), also highlighted
the potential of green economies for job creation
– for example, the fast fashion industry, which has
contributed adversely to the environment, which could
benefit from a “green transition” by engaging social
enterprises involved in recycling and innovation.
Other sectors with potential for growth includes
organic farming, sustainable agriculture, green food
manufacturing, and green construction. Manisha also
flagged, however, that social dialogue must be promoted among workers, policy

16 Green skills are further divided into sustainability and resilience skills – or skills that young
people need to safely adapt to climate change, mitigate its impact, and use resources efficiently
– and professional skills and competencies, which are job-specific and tailored to specific
industries.

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makers, experts, and other stakeholders to discuss, identify and address gaps, in
addition to opportunities and best practices, that could further support the transition to
the green and blue economy.

Given promising trends on the green and blue economy, both speakers called for better
stakeholder coordination, capacity development, research, and financing efforts, as
well as coordinated efforts to ensure the inclusivity of the paradigm shift to benefit all,
especially vulnerable and marginalized populations.

B. Panelists

As a demographic with high risk of unemployment, young

people are major stakeholders in the discussion about
green and blue jobs in the region – not only as passive
beneficiaries but as catalysts of change. Leveraging the
contributions of young people, however, also entails
their meaningful engagement. Mohsen Gul (ADB) shared
examples of initiatives that have engaged young people in
critical developmental processes, especially regarding green
jobs promotion during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, the
ADB Youth for Asia initiative (YfA) follows a three-pronged model of Action-Insight-
Voice to identify youth engagement opportunities in ADB policies and programs,
and ensures that youth are able to “get their hands dirty on the ground” rather than
only becoming “the alarm bell for issues of concern”. Guided by the MYE framework
developed by the Youth Employment Funders Group, ADB YfA also focuses on
financing and resilience building, which includes upskilling, re-skilling and learning
opportunities alongside conducive policies and institution-building exercises. Second,
UNDP’s engagement of young people in the development of a national roadmap for
green and blue jobs have led to a bottom-up approach in defining what green and blue
jobs should be created under the COVID-19 economic stimulus package of Pakistan and
to expand beyond traditional sectors to be gender- and youth-sensitive.

Abdulla Naseer (Government of Maldives) mentioned

the government’s efforts to support the promotion of
green and blue jobs in the time of COVID-19. For instance,
the Maldives National Skills Development Authority
has endorsed employment opportunities and provided
certificate courses for standardized skills organized in the
tourism sector specifically for protected area management.
Furthermore, the government has also prioritized and
incorporated the concept of blue economy in their current
strategic action, which has provided many employment
opportunities in various sectors and economic diversification, while prioritizing
environmental protection and preservation. Building on the first panelist, Abdulla
confirmed that communities, especially young people, should take part in initiatives
combating climate change – especially in countries such as the Maldives, which are at
higher risk to its adverse impacts. Such engagement requires decentralized frameworks
that give more power to local councils and local communities so that they are better

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positioned to address climate change issues and actively participate in these activities.

Given the potential of the green and blue economy to

create jobs, Jui Joshi (Climate Collective) highlighted the
need to combine low- and high-technology, and small-
and large-scale new innovations, and the role of young
entrepreneurs in furthering this goal. Impact-focused
start-ups have been increasingly provided solutions that
not only yielded profits to entrepreneurs but also helped
clean up oceans, manage waste, and support upcycling.
In the region, where young women face several more
barriers, including socio-cultural ones, in becoming
entrepreneurs, Jui believes that stakeholders must be made aware of the benefits of
local green entrepreneurship, and be encouraged to provide more flexibility to women
entrepreneurs who also need to manage other responsibilities. One immediate way to
support them is to ensure they can access capital at the right time and to support them
from the early stages so that they do not give up on their ideas.

The 10 Billion Tree Tsunami project in Pakistan aims

to plant 10 billion trees by 2023. Apart from natural
resources conservation, it is a telling example of the niche
for green jobs. As the final panelist, Rab Nawaz (WWF)
spoke about how the large-scale tree-planting initiative
slowly built rapport and ownership among local youth,
who previously tended to migrate to cities in search of
jobs, due to demand for people to manage the nurseries
and make profit out of them. The government has now
taken interest because it has provided 10,000 jobs and provides different tools and
techniques to reach the 10-billion goal. Additional initiatives that generate green jobs,
such as increasing the number of national park services to increase the number of
guides and entrepreneurs, are being planned. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, might
derail progress in these efforts – and in other sectors, such as the tourism sector –
highlighting the importance of holding industries accountable to reducing their carbon
footprints, putting in place greener policies, and investing in local companies so that
they can survive the pandemic.

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Graphic Note 1. Key Points from the Blue and Green Economy Session.

C. Q&A Session

What policy recommendations do you think are necessary for young people to be
more engaged in the blue and green economy?

Rab Nawaz (WWF)

• Start from the basics, start from the curriculum. We must convince people that
there is a good future in green jobs and the green economy.

• The blue economy is misunderstood. Just developing fisheries is not the

answer – we need to more communities such as small-scale fishers and
recognize the importance of habitats such as mangroves.

• We need to adopt to nature-based solutions. They have been around for years,
yet they do not have a lot of investment. We need to rethink how we would
conduct developments in different sectors and in local policies with nature-
based solutions.

Jui Joshi (Climate Collective)

• Entrepreneurship should be recognized as of the key drivers of sustainable

world. We have to recognize and support innovations in climate and clean tech.
we also have to provide support in mentorship and capital.

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• We also have to focus on thriving communities which will support impact

startups. The culture of entrepreneurship needs to build up in unity and
inclusion.

• We also have to break the barriers and stereotypes for women in business
and societies. Massive awareness campaigns to make women in business as a
given rather than something out of the ordinary. We need to promote ideation
workshops to motivate young girls.

• Recognize the barriers in finance. Recognize that women entrepreneurs have

different needs in finance because they probably have low collateral and other
factors. We must ensure that they have access to capital.

Mohsen Gul (ADB YfA)

• Research and Evidence: there is gap in evidence when it comes to

understanding what green jobs rules and entrepreneurship of their societies
need to be developed. Localization or invest in understanding of green
economy and jobs to localize that in South Asia or Asia Pacific context is
important and that will require a lot of thinking on ground and engaging with
communities. A lot of futures thinking and design thinking exercise that need to
be engaged in a more creative manner.

• Going back to the road mapping exercise, we require policies and frameworks
that are cross dimensional and interdisciplinary. It is important we ensure that
the private sector and academia nexus is built so we can create opportunities
that will lead to job creation and capacity building of young people.

E’nam Malkawi (IsDB)

• Stimulate dialogues with private sectors, as they provide opportunities, and

they can be partners. We can work with CSRs and other sectors to provide
opportunities as well.

Thematic Session on 21st Century Jobs (29 Sept 2021)

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Keynote speeches, as well as a panel of experts, convened to discuss the challenges

and opportunities brought by the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of skilling and preparing
adolescents and young people for 21st century jobs. Insights from Google, Microsoft,
AIESEC International, the Royal Kingdom of Bhutan, Solutions for Youth Employment, as
well as the SBK Foundation were shared, including their recommendations to stakeholders
on this topic.

Moderator and Speakers (in alphabetical order)

• Bickey Russell, Director for Global Operations, Google Singapore
• Frank van Cappelle, Education Specialist, UNICEF ROSA
• Hosea Lai, Director, Asia and the Pacific, Microsoft Philosophies
• Louise Kim, Global President, AIESEC International
• Md. Abul Kalam Azad, President and Chair of Steering Committee, Generation
Unlimited Bangladesh
• Namita Datta, Program Manager, Solutions for Youth Employment, World Bank
• Norbu Wangchuk, Director of the Department of Technical Education, Ministry of
Labor and Human Resources, Kingdom of Bhutan

• Sonia Bashir Kabir, Founder and Chairperson, SBK Foundation

Highlights from Session Discussion

A. Keynote Speakers

Keynote speaker Hosea Lai (Microsoft Philanthropies) spoke

about how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted global
employment trends and creating new sets of challenges. An
estimated 149 million new tech and tech-enabled jobs are
expected to be created in the next five years and by 2025,
companies anticipate that as much as 40% of their workers
will need reskilling. A major challenge is the need to ensure
workers – new and returning alike – acquire the right skills to
meet the demands of technology-driven jobs.

Hosea further discussed Microsoft’s commitment to provide inclusive skills and

opportunities for young people to gain jobs and livelihoods. At the core of their work
are efforts to move innovative efforts to scale, and this includes working directly with
governments to drive systematic changes, as well as capacity-building approaches, which
enhance organizational capacities to deliver accessible and scalable skills development
training for youth. To support these efforts, Hosea advised stakeholders to adopt a
partnership mindset – one that allows each stakeholder to bring
different propositions and jointly create progressive ideas and
solutions from the diversity of ideas on the table – as well as
creating bigger platforms for partnerships. He also cautioned
against focusing entirely on skills building; instead, initiatives
should aim to serve the entire value chain of the digital economy.

Concurring with the first keynote speaker on the changes in

labor market trends during the pandemic, Bickey Russel (Google)
discussed how technology could be utilized to address the

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massive unmet need of enabling people to find meaningful work. True to its mission
of ensuring their products suit the needs of users, Google developed Kormo, a job-
matching platform piloted in Bangladesh, which connected individuals’ (especially
first-time jobseekers) skill sets to jobs based on their interests and qualifications. The
opportunity emerged when observing the rising numbers of youth unemployment
coupled with emerging new job categories, such as engineering, media, and education.
To develop the technology that would address the problem, Bickey shared lessons from
their efforts, in particular: considering how timely and effective the solution could be
for intended users and deploying and adapting this quickly to the market.

B. Panelists

The panelists shared different insights on 21st century jobs, ranging from providing
guidance to young people, adapting TVET programs for a COVID-19 setting, and
promoting the inclusivity of digital skills-building programs.

The panel first opened with insights from Louise Kim (AIESEC).
Commenting on the critical gaps in enabling young people to
enter the 21st Century world of work, Louise acknowledged
that soft skills were important but also that many young
people struggled – and needed support in – understanding
what career paths to pursue, what skills to build and how to
further develop their strengths to successfully land jobs. She
emphasized the importance of safe and enabling environments
which encourage young people to explore and acquire practical experiences, challenge
themselves, and learn to be resilient when they fail. The lack of such environments, she
notes, impedes the ability of young people to better understand what they can do and
how to take bigger responsibility. It is therefore incumbent upon stakeholders, adult
and youth alike, to understand how to support them in their journey while providing
opportunities to build both technical and soft skills along the way.

Norbu Wangchuk (Kingdom of Bhutan) shared

an example of how the government is supporting
youth employment during the pandemic through
its Technical and Vocational Educational and
Training (TVET) programs. In Bhutan, TVET
programs are guided by four pillars: (1) aligning
TVET processes and programs with local
economic and emerging global economic trends;
(2) transforming and making accessible TVET
infrastructures; (3) gender mainstreaming; and
(4) establishing more responsive programs for young people. In spite of these efforts,
Norbu admitted that there were still challenges, especially in terms of generating
interest among youth to engage in TVET programs. He shared how people, including
policymakers, parents, and government officials, had a low image of TVET. As a result,
transforming the image of such programs is an important priority for his department,
in addition to rolling out online courses that could easily be adapted and accessible to
students, and developing programs responding to COVID-19 recovery programs.

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While solutions are sorely needed today, Namitta Datta (S4YE)

discussed that it was important that these are inclusive and for
tech-based ones, in particular, to have a social and emotional
component. People with disabilities often do not have access
to interactions that other individuals have – and this can be
further exacerbated in tech platforms if the social emotional
aspect of the user experience is not built in as well. At the
same time, Namitta also advocated for stakeholders to instill
emotional resilience among young people. As the ability
to bounce back from a setback or failure, emotional resilience would contribute to
addressing the alarming rates of mental health challenges that young people are facing
in the time of COVID and in coping with the fast-changing nature of work. This can be
done by providing certain types of support and programs that will aid and encourage
the mindfulness of people, being aware of their feelings and changing the stories
internally to create positive impacts that would give youth the assurance to move
forward.

The fourth speaker, Sonia Kabir (SBK Foundation)

concurred with other panelists that technology plays a
powerful role in equipping the most marginalized youth
with the tools they need to be employable. One of the
initiatives that the SBK Foundation has launched to
empower rural communities in South Asia consists of
several approaches, including a content-based digital
platform app that build foundational skills for youth
and marginalized populations and providing them
opportunities to generate income and share their skills. Acknowledging that most
innovative solutions leverage technology, Sonia flagged the importance of investing
in digital infrastructure to ensure these solutions reach remote and rural communities,
making the Internet and digital devices accessible, and protecting consumer rights and
data privacy.

The final panelist, Md. Abul Kalam Azad (GenU Bangladesh), shared his reflections
on the insights shared by previous speakers. From his perspective, stakeholders
have to address four key areas: (1) in promoting education and skills, addressing the
stigma associated with technical vocational education through civil education; (2)
supporting the participation of the private sector to promote entrepreneurship; (3)
youth employment; and (4) promoting youth engagement, specifically making sure
young people are involved in decisions and programs that affect them. To further
advancements in innovation, he highlighted the need for technical support for youth to
maximize global resources; create productive tools that help jobseekers, e-commerce
and financial institutions; paying attention to the unique needs and challenges that
vulnerable young people face; and standardizing skills and technical support across all
countries.

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Graphic Note 2. Key Points from the 21st Century Jobs Session

C. Q&A Session

What are some of the pre-conditions that a country must fulfill or meet to partner
up with Microsoft or Google or any other expert organizations and on soft skills, are
there any specification systems available that will help recognize the soft skills that
are available in our youth rather than just the emphasis on technical and academical
achievement?

There are no such criteria that a country should need but it is important to have a
conversation because you are seeing it in a country level not from an organization
level and there is a large scope of things that can be discussed more so, in a
governmental on how we can actually support a country in bringing the digital
solutions to the underserved communities in your country. (Hosea Lai, Microsoft
Philanthropies)

Organizations must partner up with the government to provide these technical

solutions and explore the opportunities that they can benefit from each other. Google
offers a portfolio of products and services that they could offer which may possibly be
in line with a country’s initiatives. (Bickey Russel, Google)

How do we ensure individual with either intellectual or physical disabilities are being
reached in underprivileged and other far-flung communities?

First, adapt the life cycle approach of work. This begins with identifying the needs of

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people at various stages. People with disabilities are most visible to the government
so it is important to work with the government about this tracking system. Second,
develop social registries to find out where people with disabilities are located and
what are their needs. Third, think about how we design our educational systems –
push for mainstreaming where people with disabilities can have access to any school
that they want to participate in but at the same time cater to their special needs.

The most empowering thing that we can give people with disability is to make them
economically independent and productive and make use of their sense of dignity.
Thinking systematically about their life cycles as well as the available government
infrastructures – schools, transport systems, roads and different buildings must also
cater to the needs of people with disabilities. (Namitta Datta, S4YE)

What might be a good example of a one-stop youth employment service that also
helps the marginalized and vulnerable youth jobs and support them towards their
work transitions?

Bickey Russel (Google)

• Enhancing the way developers interact with users so that they can serve the
needs of every job seeker at any given time and location as well as be able to
serve the needs of business and every industry that have varying requirements.
Resolve the need for smaller groups first then broaden the scope over time.

Hosea Lai (Microsoft Philanthropies)

• Look at the job seeker from a life cycle approach: One-stop Shop assumes that
one organization can solve the entire life cycle. When looking at it through the
life cycle of a jobseeker, define the various parts from being skilled, undergoing
a reskilling process and up until arriving to that job and bring various
partnerships, bridge connections and be able to solve the solution together.
Moreover, it requires collaborative efforts to make it effective.

Norbu Wangchuk (Kingdom of Bhutan)

• Countries who are behind in terms of skilling must also develop their low-cost
new marketing digital systems that could generate jobs for the youth and the
youth’s interest for the youth.

Md. Abul Kalam Azad (Generation Unlimited Bangladesh)

• Arranging job fairs where employers can assess jobseekers based on their
demand for manpower and be able to train people, even the disabled ones to
be well-equipped for their jobs.

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Thematic Session on the Informal Sector (30 Sept 2021)

The session involved keynote speeches and panel discussions from representatives of
the Government of Pakistan, Generation Unlimited, International Labour Organization,
GoodWeave International, BRAC, and Pravah. The discussion re-evaluated strategies
and approaches to transitioning adolescents and young people to the formal sector.
Speakers also tackled how actors and decision makers could address exploitative labor
practices such as child and forced labor in South Asia, as well as issues and solutions
related to social protection and social dialogue for young workers, and the creation and
promotion of decent work in the informal sector during COVID-19 and beyond.

Apart from having a detailed discussion on the strategies and approaches to respond to
COVID’s impact on informal workers, speakers also spoke about the role of education
and skills development systems in facilitating the re-entry of workers to the labor
market during and beyond the pandemic.

Moderator and Speakers (in alphabetical order)

• Christopher Ernst, Senior Informal Employment Specialist, International Labour

Organization

• Ivan Coursac, UNICEF ROSA

• Meenakshi Ruhela, Program Coordinator, Pravah

• Sania Nishtar, Senator, Government of Pakistan

• Silvia Mera, Director, Apparel Program, GoodWeave International

• Tasmiah T Rahman, BRAC Skills Development Program, BRAC

• Urmila Sakar, Senior Adviser, Planning and Programs, Generation Unlimited

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Highlights from Session Discussion

A. Keynote Speakers

Both keynote speakers, Senator Sania Nishtar (Government of Pakistan) and Urmila
Sakar (GenU), recognized the devastating impact of COVID-19 on young workers –
some of whom entered the informal sector to ease their economic burdens, and others
who have been working informally and have been made more vulnerable during the
pandemic due to job losses, reduced working hours, among others.

Despite efforts from the government, Senator

Nishtar shared how informal work became an
alternative to unemployment and poverty in the
country as it continued to provide wages, albeit
low and based on work rendered. In response,
she shared the measures that the Pakistani
government took to respond to work informality,
including developing a registry of the informal
sector for regulation and monitoring, providing
bank accounts to workers in the informal
sector, facilitating social security arrangements, and expanding social protection for
informal workers. While the keynote speaker recognized that skilling workers is not a
new challenge brought by the pandemic, she also called for stakeholders to revisit the
definition to align with the needs of the current landscape.

For second keynote speaker, Urmila Sakar, the vast number of

informal workers in South Asia is an indicator for the need to
provide quality TVET that would enable young people to earn
sustainable incomes when they leave school early. To recover
from the pandemic, she highlighted the importance of bringing
young people back to schools, connecting them to employment,
supporting countries as they make the shift from face-to-face
to digital-learning or hybrid modalities, and promoting youth
participation. Urmila also shared two examples of initiatives that
seek to address these gaps: the GenU and Microsoft partnership for Passport to Earning,
which would deliver digitized learning ang skilling aligned with the 21st century, and
UNICEF’s girls-centered 21st-century skills programs for training and employment.

B. Panelists

The panel opened with Christoph Ernst (ILO)’s

discussion of a framework they use to guide efforts
in transitioning workers from the informal to formal
sector. The approaches in the framework are intended
to also promote the creation of decent jobs and are
dependent on effective social dialogue between workers
and employers. ILO’s efforts to support young workers
shift to the formal sector includes providing normative
support, technical assistance to governments, direct
support to youth, and leveraging youth insights to inform programming.

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Tasmiah T Rahman (BRAC) similarly shared BRAC’s

initiatives in supporting informal workers, such as
the STAR program, an apprenticeship-based skills
training program; and PROMISE, an entrepreneurship
development skills training program. The STAR program
consists of on-the-job training, theoretical training, soft
skills, essential life skills, and foundational skills training
(Bangla, English, Math, and digital literacy; and was
designed to target youth dropouts by skilling them for
employment. Thus far, the program has helped reduce child marriage among young
women participants and encouraged the Bangladesh government to give more value to
TVET. On the other hand, the PROMISE program supports entrepreneurs outside formal
education by providing training and loans for startups – two areas that are sorely
needed during the pandemic to improve the condition of workers and women.

Speaking about their work in addressing work informality and

child labor in supply chains, Silvia Mera (GoodWeave) discussed
the GoodWeave System, a holistic approach that helps identify
issues and remediate and prevent them across the supply chain.
It has served as an effective standard for protecting all workers
and relies on effective work in grassroots and communities,
which empower local stakeholders to prevent and regulate child
labor, and orienting employers about keeping young workers
away from hazardous work.

Finally, Meenakshi Ruhela (Pravah) shared how young

workers end up in the informal sector due to the lack
of required skills, education, and exposure to available
formal jobs. She clarified that youth remained in the
informal sector not by choice but by the social condition
that they needed the income to sustain their families. She
also spoke about the Government of India’s initiative to
skill 300 million people by 2022 with the skills needed
in a digitalized and fast-paced world, but also advised
that efforts should include building young people’s empathy, adaptability, flexibility,
resilience, and lifelong learning. Her final advice to stakeholders was to design youth-
centric programs and to integrate life skills in the curriculum as this would be essential
for young people to succeed not only in the world of work but in their lives in general.

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Graphic Note 3. Key Points from Informal Sector Session.

C. Q&A Session

How is BRAC working with governments to reform education and skilling?

The apprenticeship program has been replicated by BRAC with different organizations
and is under discussion to continue scaling up. We have models that are applicable in
a face-to-face setting in education. TVET continues to hinder the delivery of services
but discussions to innovate are ongoing. (Tasmiah Rahman, BRAC)

COVID-19 prevents small and community enterprises to practice formal and proper
employment for their employees. Do we have any best practices which can be done
to support these enterprises in establishing more fair employment?

Access to good quality finances is important, diversify their portfolio, and package
that if employees are not paid properly, they will not stay. (Tasmiah Rahman, BRAC)

How can we provide social protection to young people who migrate for work?

Through registration: by knowing them, where they are, and how they exist to
provide the basic social protection. Technologies can be used to track and help them.
(Christopher Ernst, ILO)

Employers need to look out for youth people and build networks for protection from
challenges. (Meenakshi Ruhela, Pravah)

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EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

Closing Plenary (30 Sept 2021)

The closing plenary reflected on the discussions from the summit, discussing the vision
for the future of work and share the aspirations and expectations of adolescents, youth,
practitioners, and funders. Representatives from UNICEF, SAARC, Nepal Scouts, and
UNESCO, as well as moderators and youth speakers from the thematic sessions, talked
about policy recommendations on how to achieve young people’s aspirations and
envisioned the future of youth in the world of work beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moderator and Speakers (in alphabetical order)

• Alexandra Robinson, Policy Research and Advise, OECD

• Dhuwarakha Sriram, Chief of ADAP and Generation Unlimited, UNICEF India
• Frank van Capelle, UNICEF ROSA
• Ismail Mamdooh, Director, Social Affairs Division, SAARC
• Ivan Coursac, UNICEF ROSA
• John Trew, UNICEF ROSA
• Jui Joshi, Climate Collective
• Louise Kim, AIESEC International
• Meenakshi Ruhela, Pravah
• Reis Lopez Rello, UNICEF ROSA
• Riju Manandhar, Youth Volunteer, Nepal Scouts
• Wesley Teter, Senior Consultant, Section for Educational Innovation and Skills
Development, UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau of Education, UNESCO

Highlights from Session Discussion

A. Panelists

Dhuwarakha Sriram (UNICEF India) raised a series

of important questions: do the young people get the
education they need? Are they learning the right skills,
and will they find their job? what are the opportunities
out there how can they find them? Dhuwarakha shared
the importance of (1) being dynamic and innovative in
the face of new challenges; (2) ensuring the meaningful
engagement of young people, which goes beyond

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providing services to them and requiring instead to work with them as partners; (3)
sharing best practices, failures and learnings, finding opportunities for collaboration,
and being guided by young people; and (4) being thoughtful about the design of
programs so as not to leave anyone behind.

Ismail Mamdooh (SAARC) shared details about the

SAARC Youth Charter, which calls upon member states
to create a productive employment opportunities for
youth, provide enhanced job opportunities for young
people, through increased investments in education
and vocational training, provide educate and equip
employment opportunities and activities for the youth
to make them economically and socially productive, and
creating awareness about family planning, HIV, aids
and other sexually transmitted diseases and risk of consumption of tobacco, alcohol
and drugs. Moreover, the charter recognizes the need to promote increase a cross-world
exchange of ideas through greater interaction among students and academics across the
region. He also mentioned another initiative -- the SAARC Institution, which was aimed
at recognizing extraordinary youth talent and encouraging overall development of youth
in the region.

Wesley Teter (UNESCO) highlighted the UN decade of

action, which presents stakeholders with opportunities
to come together and implement ideas. Concurring
with others that the COVID-19 has derailed progress to
the sustainable development goals, specifically goal
4, he stressed the need for data to guide decisions on
critical issues and solutions being developed to address
them. During the Tokyo Convention, in particular, he
shared that there were discussions about how to hold
diverse skills to address problems in education and
employment, and that apart from these, stakeholders must be held accountable for
moving forward and addressing the challenges that the sector currently faces.

As the final panelist, Riju Manandhar (Nepal Scouts)

emphasized the contributions and role of young people in
building back better. He talked about ensuring the engagement
of youth in dialogues regarding policies and programs
that affected them, and more importantly, involving them
in planning, designing, and implementing policies to gain
their commitment and understanding of the issues. He also
forwarded the idea that young people were knowledgeable
about their problems related to skills and employability, and
that these insights should be leveraged alongside other sources of knowledge when
decisions are being made.

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Graphic Note 4. Key Points from Closing Plenary.

B. Q&A Session

What would the meaningful participation of young people look like in the co-creation
process per say for haps we can share with us some examples are some things that
must be kept in mind to really meet that threshold of meaningful participation?

Dhuwarakha Sriram

• Meaningful participation would entail quite a few things: (1) Giving young
people a seat at the table from the time of agenda setting to design of the
program and across monitoring and evaluation processes as well being
analyzed; (2) Passing on the mic to them and inviting them to speak while also
actively listening to the perspective of knowledge and validating the same
as well; and (3) Using your individual and institutional position of power to
amplify their perspectives and translate them into positive now most of our
interventions whether good or bad.

• Apart from these, collaborate and connect with the youth as active partners
of programs that they are concerned about; use different platforms to connect
with the youth to make sure no one is left behind; and co-create and solve
problems of COVD-19, education, and employment with the youth.

Wesley Teter

• The UNESCO Conference this May 2022 – We are talking about this in the
context of involving empowering and inspiring youth.

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Riju Manandhar

• Meaningful participation is all about giving space to use from scratch to the end,
making sure that their voices are heard, making sure that they get a space and
making sure that those spaces are brave and safe and with no biases and with no
discrimination. Give youth a space from scratch to end that is safe and enabling
them to genuinely participate.

Ismail Mamdooh

• SAARC Charter – involving the youth in four key areas: (1) gender equality which
clearly states that there shouldn’t be any discrimination in health, education,
employment; (2) education and development; (3) universal access education
available despite the significant process we still have access to education in the
region (4) encourage school attendances and reduce dropout rates.

How do we promote lifelong learning when most young people aren’t able to access the
places where they were previously gaining those services due to? What can we do in our
different organizations or as different stakeholders to make sure that we’re promoting
lifelong learning and the right kind of learning that’s needed for future among young
people?

Online and blended learning s can promote flexibility and increase access dramatically.
Recognize formal and non-formal learning. I think that’s a way to you know give access
to lifelong learning and a very concrete way. (Wesley Teter, UNESCO)

An example of this is developing the Generation Unlimited Report and co-creating it

with the youth. This enables us to linkup with other communities of young people and
how we can exchange ideas on an online platform. (Dhuwarakha Sriram, UNICEF India)

What can the education system make sure that young people have the skills to be
employable and to participate in this future of work?

Help graduates enter the job market. Educators and employer should work together
to ensure that students get the skills and education demanded by the market. The
qualification specially the verifications of jobs should be mutually drafted by educators
and employers and educators need to draft the curriculum based on qualifications
required so that there is no difference between what is demanded and what is
supplied. (Riju Manandhar, Nepal Scouts)

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EXPERTS’ RECOMMENDATIONS
For the Future of Work
1. Ensure education and training systems are equipped to build
higher-level and quality transversal, foundational and “human
skills”. Having the right kinds of skills and credentials will be
the gateway for a young person’s potential entry into the formal
labor market. Considering the technological advancements that
continually disrupt the nature and demand for work, these skills
would enable young workers not only to access their first jobs
but weather any changes in the future, thereby improving their
resilience. Given the importance of quality skills, education and
training systems will need to effectively deliver demand-driven,
evidence-based skills development programs, which may entail
investments in agile labor market information systems to provide
labor market data; training for educators, trainers, and education
sector leaders; updated pedagogies and curricula; and stronger
private sector involvement in skills training of young people.

2. Incorporate mental health-related interventions in labor market

policies and programs. The fear, anxiety and stress caused by
heightened economic and health insecurities in the time of
COVID have ripple effects on workers’ health and well-being.
Comprehensive policies are even more important today – ones
that especially target both education and employment-related
needs, as well as provide support for mental health issues that
young workers must deal with. Emerging examples of grassroots
initiatives, such as the youth-led Global Shapers Bangkok Hub’s
provision of psychological first aid and volunteer training sessions,
could be incorporated as program interventions that complement
employment services provided to young people.

3. Leverage resources to address the digital divide in learning.

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the significant difference
accessing the Internet and owning remote learning devices make
in a young person’s education and employment prospects. As
subsequent waves of the pandemic continue to result in lockdowns
and similar measures in countries, online and hybrid learning
modalities are expected to continue – along with the demand for
technology and connectivity, which remains elusive to vulnerable
populations. Leveraging the resources of the private sector and
the regulatory functions of governments will be critical in ensuring
ICT infrastructure and affordable devices are made available to all.
Platforms such as Generation Unlimited and the Global Initiative
for Decent Jobs for Youth are starting points for synergies among
stakeholders to be enhanced.

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For the Green and Blue Economy

1. Enhance tools for policymaking and implementation to integrate green jobs as
solutions for a more holistic approach in addressing issues of job security, climate
change mitigation and preservation, social protection, and social wellbeing
towards building a greener economy.

Specifically:

• Decentralizing and localizing policy and policy frameworks to include local

communities in developing and informing national strategies and plans on
the green and blue economy.

• Strengthen or create multi-stakeholder platforms to foster cooperation

between and among public, private, and civil society organizations, as well
as various sectoral communities

• Stimulate dialogue among stakeholders to create coherent approaches and

integrated policies at the national, sectoral, and local levels; and identify
and address gaps and challenges in knowledge, access to finance, skills, and
different opportunities.

• Incorporate specific green jobs assessments in policy-making tools to

capture existing and future green jobs and skills in demand.

• Integrate targets for green jobs in national plans for climate change
mitigation/adaptation, ecosystem restoration, nature-based solutions and for
addressing the pollution crisis

2. Develop and implement policies that support entrepreneurship and

innovation-driven ecosystem for the green and blue economy

Specifically:

• Acknowledge the impact of entrepreneurship and its potential to

innovate and fast-track innovations for the transition to greener
economies.

• Promote policies that incentivize and enable innovations

in climate tech to develop and commercialize faster (e.g.,
promoting ease of doing business; capital flows at the right
stages of business such as low-interest loans, grants, and private
investors; communities for green and blue entrepreneurship).

• Introducing policies promoting sustainable operations (e.g.,

nature-based or sustainable tourism).

• Prioritize supporting entrepreneurs promoting the green and blue

economy through mentorships, capital, and access to impact
start-up hubs.

• Create innovative financing and incentive mechanisms and

recognition of businesses moving towards a green and just
transition.

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• Create opportunities for incubation of innovative ideas and encourage

entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs.

3. Invest in sufficiently preparing the current and future workforce for a shift to the
green and blue economy

Specifically:

• Strengthen linkages in education, research and development, and market-

driven vocational trainings to expand the network of platforms for skilling,
re-skilling, and up-skilling green and blue workers (young and old).

• Enhance education and employment sectoral understanding of the gaps,

challenges, strengthen the understanding of what green jobs rules and
entrepreneurship of their societies need to be developed.

• Integrate the concept of green jobs and sustainability in school curricula at

all levels, and especially in industries with the highest potential to shift to
green: tourism, agriculture, engineering, architecture, finance, water and
irrigation, urban planning, etc.

• Facilitate knowledge exchange and sharing of best practices and lessons

learned on skilling and preparing a green and blue economy-ready workforce
among experts, workers, policymakers, and other stakeholders.

• Enhance the scope of green jobs which currently is restricted to sectors like
renewables, construction, automobile. R& D and innovation will play a major
role here.

• Develop sustainable training infrastructure for addressing skills gaps and

know-how.

4. Promote the inclusion and social protection of vulnerable and marginalized

groups, especially adolescents and young people, women, people with disabilities,
and ethnic minorities, among others

Specifically:

• Adopt an inclusive approach to planning and executing a ‘Sustainable’ Blue

Economy Framework with a strong emphasis on nature-based solutions and
based on the participation of vulnerable and marginalized groups (including
adolescents and youth, women, people with disabilities, ethnic minorities,
among others).

• Utilize the transition to a blue and green economy to reduce the gender pay
gap. Prove incentives, subsidies, and financial guarantees to youth-led green
enterprises to support their growth and enhance their resilience to future
shocks.

• Replicate entrepreneurial or innovative approaches that engage young

people and women in similar projects around the world, especially as a post-
pandemic economic recovery approach.

• Map existing and future opportunities, skills, technologies needed for

the private sector to create green job opportunities across sectors, and to

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promote market access for marginalized and vulnerable workers and related
interventions.

• Promote gender-transformative entrepreneurship through (i) awareness

campaigns to break the socio-cultural barriers for women in business; (ii)
ideation programs to motivate more girls to take up entrepreneurship; (iii)
supporting women-led green enterprises and technologies; (iv) remove
barriers impeding access to finance and catering to different needs of
women entrepreneurs in the form of loans for women entrepreneurs, tax
benefits, sensitization of investors, etc.

• Promote high technology businesses as well low technology businesses

recognizing the barrier to tech for women. Promotion of local green
entrepreneurship leads to sustainable livelihood opportunities for women
as well as promotes development of local economies and higher skill
development and employment of women in the businesses locally.

• Create a green and future-proof workforce and increase invulnerable

employment by overcoming the skills mismatch, skilling new entrants to the
market /tomorrow’s workforce, re-skilling people whose jobs are becoming
less relevant, reintegrate youth who lost jobs due to the pandemic into the
economy, upskill the existing workforce to become resilient to shocks and
prevent future loss of jobs.

• Provide decent employment and social protection measures, including

health care, unemployment protection, and pension schemes.

For 21st Century Jobs Promotion

1. Invest in enhancing skilling and reskilling opportunities, especially in building soft

and “human” skills and aligning them with market demand

Specifically:

• Ensure that young people are empowered and engaged to take up these
opportunities. Organizations should not leave the onus completely on young
people to be able to get involved but equally have a responsibility towards
empowering young people to take up opportunities that would give them a
better future.

• Adopt a lifecycle approach when designing programs for jobseekers. Look at

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issues from schooling and skilling, to undergoing a reskilling process, right up

until landing that job, and the need for ongoing reskilling.

• Engage in strategic partnerships where stakeholders work together to bring

innovative, interlinked solutions to youth throughout that job Life Cycle.

• Governments should better integrate the demand side with youth

employment and skilling opportunities.

2. Design inclusive programs that reach vulnerable communities, minding the digital
divide, and leveraging low- to high-tech solutions and opportunities

Specifically:

• Design programs that strengthen vulnerable youth’s digital literacy and skills.

• Bring digital content and digital skilling to the underserved communities by

reaching them in a language and through technology that is accessible to
them.

• Work with community organizations and government to shift the mindset of

youth towards being open to these digital changes and innovative skilling.

• Build – or expand the reach of – the 4G network infrastructure in remote or

rural communities. Rising digital connectivity is key to create digital solutions.

• Due to affordability issues in the region, governments should increase access

to digital devices by providing subsidies, vouchers, or cash transfers to
purchase digital devices and network subscriptions.

• Strengthen the ability of regulators to protect consumer rights and data

privacy, and enhance social security.

• Promote and develop job application platforms to people across all walks
of life as it is an innovative and efficient way of matching their skill sets to
potential job opportunities.

• Prioritize vulnerable groups, particularly young people with disabilities.

• Address gender inequalities in the tech industry and in TVET. There must be a
more inclusive environment and platform where there are opportunities and
courses that are designed specifically for young women.

• Ensure policies and programs have targeted and specialized approaches

to include marginalized groups including women and people/youth with
disabilities.

• Enhance monitoring and identification of vulnerable groups and youth with

disabilities is needed in order to better understand their needs, the challenges
they face finding meaningful employment, and gaps in the current system.

3. Foster strategic partnerships among governments, private sector, development and

civil society organizations, and youth

Specifically:

• Offer opportunities for young people to develop themselves by partnering

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with other organizations that can help provide these opportunities.

• Convene all sectors through platforms to gather different propositions and

co-create progressive ideas and solutions.

• Explore how to better work together in tackling challenges, in particular

closing the digital divide.

4. Maximize new innovations and prepare youth for these solutions

Specifically:

• Instill among young people the skill of adaptability and use innovation to
meet the needs of youth and support them with meaningful learning and
employment opportunities.

• Develop new innovative lenses around what, how and when to teach youth,
to better prepare them for the 21st century world of work.

For the Informal Sector

1. Convene and plan post-COVID-19 labor market with stakeholders such as
government, private sector, CSOs, training providers and youth. Make a holistic
and inclusive plan for the recovery of the people and industries.

2. Help youth transition from informal to formal sector by skilling, re-skilling, and
up-skilling young workers in a digitalized world of work. Align the education
curriculum and training programs on the holistic development of the youth towards
21st-century employability skills and entrepreneurial mindset.

3. Promote expanded social protection of the government by registering informal

workers, using digitalized bank transactions for wages, and ensure social dialogue
between employees and employers for labor rights.

4. Assist industries in their recovery from the effects of COVID-19 by providing

workplace training regarding digitalization and 21st century skills to remain
human capacity that machines cannot possess.

5. Emphasize human rights due diligence in private sector and strengthen labor laws
especially in retaining skilled workers.

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Annex A
Detailed Agenda
Overview of Sessions

Date Activity

High-Level Panel on the COVID-19 Future of Work

The panel will include a debate among experts on the implications

of the latest trends and reports on the Future of Work to countries’
build-back-better strategies and the roles different stakeholders,
including adolescents and young people, should play in this
pathway to recovery.

28 Sept 2021

Thematic Session on Blue and Green Economy

The panel aims to analyze the challenges and opportunities in

encouraging, skilling and preparing adolescents and young people
for green and blue jobs in Asia and the Pacific. Innovative solutions
on this topic will be featured, as well as recommendations for
engaging marginalized adolescents and youth.

Thematic Session on 21st Century Jobs

Experts will deep-dive into the market demand, training

approaches, and specific resource needs of countries to be able
29 Sept 2021
to develop agile, resilient and future-thinking training and labor
market systems. Innovative solutions and program models on
preparing adolescents and youth for 21st-century jobs will also be
featured.

Thematic Session on Informal Sector

As youth informality is on the rise due to COVID-19, this panel

re-evaluates previous strategies and approaches to transitioning
adolescents and young people to the formal sector and addressing
exploitative labor practices, such as child and forced labor,
especially in supply chains. Issues and solutions related to the
accessibility of social protection and social dialogue for young
workers and the creation and promotion of decent work in the
30 Sept 2021 informal sector will also be discussed.

Closing Plenary

Reflecting on the discussions from the summit, the panel will

discuss the vision for the future of work and share the aspirations
and expectations of adolescents, youth, practitioners, and
funders. This includes highlights and recommendations from
youth generated from ADB Youth for Asia’s Asia and Pacific Youth
Symposium 2021.

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Detailed Session Agenda

High Level Panel on the COVID-19 Future of Work

Time Activity Speaker

4:15 – 4:20 Iris Caluag, Meaningful Youth

Welcome of Participants Engagement Specialist, ADB
5 minutes Youth for Asia

4:20 – 4:30 Henrietta H. Fore, Executive

Opening Remarks
10 minutes Director, UNICEF

4:30 – 4:40 Keynote Speech: The Future of Jobs Beyond Karen Saez,
10 minutes COVID19 World Economic Forum

4:40 – 4:50 Keynote Speech: Achieving Scale and Impact for Kevin Frey, Chief Executive
10 minutes Youth Skills, Employability and Empowerment Officer, Generation Unlimited

Susana Puerto, International

Labour Organization

Heidi Strawson, Accenture

4:50 – 5:20
Panel Discussion on COVID19 Future of Work
30 minutes Brajesh Panth, Asian
Development Bank

Esha Farooque, Jaago

Foundation

Debate and Moderated Q&A

Panelists will discuss their thoughts on the question:

“Given the limitations of the labor market today in

5:20 – 6:00 many countries, should system actors still promote Iris Caluag, Meaningful Youth
jobs where youth are overworked, underpaid – Engagement Specialist, ADB
40 minutes especially when there are no other options to choose Youth for Asia
from?”

Throughout the panel discussion, the Moderator will

collect questions from participants through the chat
and raise them in the Q&A section

Mr. John Trew, Education

6:00 – 6:10 Specialist – Adolescent Skills
Closing Remarks
10 minutes and Employability, UNICEF
ROSA

6:10 – 6:15 Iris Caluag, Meaningful Youth

Wrap-up and closing announcements Engagement Specialist, ADB
5 minutes Youth for Asia

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EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

Thematic Session on Green and Blue Economy

Time Activity Speaker

1:15 – 1:20 Reis Lopez Rello, Climate

Welcome of Participants Change Adviser at UNICEF
5 minutes ROSA

En’am Malkawi, Lead Youth

1:20 – 1:35 Keynote: The nexus between skills development and Empowerment Specialist at
15 minutes the job market for green and blue economy the Islamic Development Bank
(IsDB)

Manisha Choudhary, India PAGE

1:35 – 1:50 Keynote: The South Asia sustainable industries and (Partnership for Action on Green
15 minutes their supply and demand labour dynamics Economy) Coordinator, UN
Environment Programme

Dr. Abdulla Naseer, Minister of

State for Environment, Climate
Change and Technology at the
Republic of Maldives

Jui Joshi, Partner at Climate

Collective
1:50 – 2:35
Panel Discussion
45 minutes Dr. Mohsen Gul, Climate Change
Youth Specialist at Asian
Development Bank’s Youth for
Asia

Rab Nawaz, Conservation

Director at World Wildlife Fund
(WWF) Pakistan

Moderated Q&A
2:35 – 3:05 Reis Lopez Rello, Climate
Throughout the panel discussion, the moderator will Change Adviser at UNICEF
30 minutes collect questions from participants through the chat ROSA
and raise them in the Q&A section

3:05 – 3:15 Reis Lopez Rello, Climate

Wrap-up and closing announcements Change Adviser at UNICEF
10 minutes ROSA

Thematic Session on 21st Century Jobs

Time Activity Speaker

4:15 – 4:20 Mr. Frank van Cappelle,

Welcome of Participants Education Specialist, UNICEF
5 minutes ROSA

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 EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

Time Activity Speaker

4:20 – 4:30 Hosea Lai, Director, Microsoft

Keynote: Online Learning Initiatives Philanthropies, Asia & the
10 minutes Pacific

4:30 – 4:40 Mr. Bickey Russell, Director

Keynote: Providing Jobs for Informal Workers in the
for Global Operations, Google
10 minutes 21st Century
Singapore

Ms. Louise Kim, President,

AIESEC International

Mr. Norbu Wangchuk, Director,

Ministry of Labor and Human
Resources, Royal Kingdom of
4:40 – 5:40 Panel Discussion: 21st century opportunities for Bhutan
60 minutes adolescents and young people in a COVID-19 world
Ms. Namita Datta, Coalition
Manager, Solutions for Youth
Employment (S4YE)

Ms. Sonia Kabir, Founder and

Chairperson, SBK Foundation

Moderated Q&A
5:40 – 6:10 Mr. Frank van Cappelle,
Throughout the panel discussion, the Moderator will Education Specialist, UNICEF
30 minutes collect questions from participants through the chat ROSA
and raise them in the Q&A section

6:10 – 6:15 Mr. Frank van Cappelle,

Wrap-up and closing announcements Education Specialist, UNICEF
5 minutes ROSA

Thematic Session on Informal Sector

Time Activity Speaker

1:15 – 1:25 Ivan Coursac, Education

Welcome of Participants Specialist, UNICEF ROSA
10 minutes (Moderator)

1:25 – 1:35
Keynote Speech Sania Nishtar, Senator, Pakistan
10 minutes

1:35 – 1:45 Urmila Sakar, Senior Adviser,

Keynote Speech
10 minutes Generation Unlimited

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EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

Time Activity Speaker

1:45 – 1:50 Ivan Coursac, Education

Mentimeter Exercise Specialist, UNICEF ROSA
5 minutes (Moderator)

Christoph Ernst, Senior

Specialist on the Informal
Economy, ILO

1:50 – 2:25 Tasmiah Tabassum, Head

Panel Discussion on Informal Sector of Strategy and Business
35 minutes Development; Head of Skills
Development, BRAC

Silvia Mera, Director, Apparel

Program, Good Weave

2:25 – 2:35 Meenakshi Ruhela, Program

Youth Reactant
10 minutes Coordinator, Pravah

2:35 – 2:55
Moderated Q&A and Pulse Checks Ivan Coursac and Panelists
10 minutes

2:55– 3:00
Graphic Recording Tofu Creatives
5 minutes

3:00–3:15 Closing Remarks (Wrap-up and closing

Ivan Coursac, Moderator
15 minutes announcements)

Closing Plenary

Time Activity Speaker

4:15 – 4:20 Alexandra Robinson, Policy

Welcome of Participants
5 minutes Research and Advice, OECD

4:20 – 4:25
Introduction of Presenters and Panelists Alexandra Robinson
5 minutes

4:25 – 4:55 Presentation of Session Highlights and Youth Policy

Reis Lopez Rello, UNICEF ROSA
30 minutes Recommendations

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 EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

Time Activity Speaker

Frank Van Capelle, UNICEF ROSA

4:25 – 4:55 Presentation of Session Highlights and Youth Policy Ivan Coursac, UNICEF ROSA
30 minutes Recommendations
Youth Policy Recommendation
Presenter

Dhuwarakha Sriram, Chief of

ADAP and Generation Unlimited,
UNICEF India

Ismail Mamdooh, Director, Social

Affairs Division, SAARC

4:55 – 5:25 Panel Reaction to the Youth Policy Riju Manandhar, Youth Volunteer,
30 minutes Recommendations Nepal Scouts

Dr. Wesley Teter, Senior

Consultant, Section for
Educational Innovation and Skills
Development, UNESCO Asia
and Pacific Regional Bureau for
Education, UNESCO

Moderated Q&A
5:25 – 5:55
Throughout the panel discussion, the Moderator Ms. Alexandra Robinson
30 minutes will collect questions from participants through the
chat and raise them in the Q&A section

5:55 – 6:05 Mr. John Trew, Education

Closing Remarks Specialist – Adolescent Skills and
10 minutes Employability, UNICEF ROSA

6:05 – 6:10
Summit Wrap-up TOFU Creatives
5 minutes

6:10 – 6:15
Final Announcements Ms. Alexandra Robinson
5 minutes

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EXPERTS’ SUMMIT: Dialogues on the COVID-19 Future of Work

John Barrett Trew

jtrew@unicef.org
Education Specialists—Adolescent Skills & Employability
Generation Unlimited Focal Point
United Nations Children’s Fund—Region of South Asia

www.unicef.org

© United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

November 2021