Governments given ‘golden opportunity’ to transform labour market after Covid-19.

Governments around the world have a “golden opportunity” to create new jobs in the aftermath of Covid-19, according to a new report published by the World Government Summit Organisation (WGS) in partnership with PwC Middle East.

It said this opportunity has been driven by profound changes in businesses, working patterns and the emergence of new economic sectors.

It is giving way to new opportunities to “unleash the skills economy” said the report titled “Unleashing the Skills Economy: How Governments Can Turn Labour Market Threats into Opportunities in the Digital and Green Age”. 

Deputy Managing Director of the World Government Summit Organisation, Mohamed Yousef Al Sharhan, said: “The Coronavirus pandemic has brought about profound changes, whose effects are still evident in the global economy, as well as in the patterns and nature of work and concepts of creating economic value. 

“These effects have changed our perception of jobs and their role in securing supply chains and achieving food, health and technical security in societies.”

The devastation caused to the global labour market by the pandemic has included the loss of millions of jobs and 8.8 percent of total working hours around the world.

Randa Bahsoun, Government and Public Sector Partner and Labor, Employment and Skills Leader at PwC Middle East, added: “Jobs and opportunities created by the green and digital twin transitions will require new skills, with people needing to adapt to working alongside digital technologies. 

“The common denominator of the new sectors emerging from the twin transitions is skills. Countries that are quicker to develop their ‘skills economy’, one where people and technology complement each other to innovate, will have the competitive edge and will be able to create a stronger chance of achieving inclusive and sustainable development.”

The report stressed that policy makers have the perfect opportunity to launch the skills economy, “which enables citizens to improve their skills through a well-functioning labour market and accessible training systems, with businesses having the right tools to invest in innovative sectors of the economy”.

It recommended “developing a skills economy, where people’s talents are used alongside technology to achieve more sustainable prosperity, includes policy questions that go beyond the narrow scope.”

But skills must also be linked to good job opportunities through integrating skills development into broader development strategies, such as industrial development, local economic development, youth employment.