SPADE

SPADE is an employment promotion strategy.

It means sector-focused, policy-oriented, area-based, demand-driven employment promotion strategy, an approach to bring about the meeting of jobseekers and jobs. It is intended to enable employers and establishments in business and industry to create more jobs, sustain existing jobs and effectively fill up manpower requirements with qualified workers.

The methodology, utilizing a bottom-up approach is rather pragmatic.

For a start, it involves a series of questions that need to be addressed:

1) In a given geographical area (area-based) what sectors are considered key employment generators? What type of businesses are currently employing workers in a particular geographic area?

2) Once these sectors (or industries) are identified, what is the expected active demand for manpower? Do these sectors need more workers? Are there indications of significant prospective demand for manpower?

3) Sectors with identified manpower demand and significant prospective demand need to be given full attention since these are the key employment generators (KEGs) in a particular province or region.

Then more specific questions need to be answered so that appropriate responses can be designed and adopted:

a) Does the sector need training support to fill up its additional manpower requirements? If training is needed to have workers who are competent to do the jobs required, then the training agency and private training facilities will come into play.

b) Does the sector require financial support to create more jobs? If more investment is needed, then financial institutions will have to come to the rescue.

c) Does the sector require support in sourcing raw materials to continue or even expand its operation? If material sources need to be identified, then the industry and trade agency as well as industry chambers can lend a hand.

d) Does the sector require technology support? If advanced technology needs to be acquired to improve or step up production, then the science and technology agency may be in a position to help.

e) Does the sector require marketing support to sustain or expand its production ? If more markets need to be developed, then the trade agency and the industry chambers will again come into play.

f) Does the sector need manpower recruitment support? If the sector has difficulty finding the right workers for its manpower needs, then the employment facilitation agency along with its local employment service outlets (PESOs) will play a significant role.

It becomes obvious that different agencies of government need to appropriately respond to specific needs of various sectors in order to create more job opportunities or sustain existing jobs.

Remember: no amount of training can solve a non-training problem. Perhaps in the same token: no amount of employment facilitation can solve a non-facilitation problem.

Identified needs can be addressed by specific agencies of government provided that the active sectors get priority attention. The (sustained) implementation of Section 394, Chapter V of the Local Government Code of the Philippines can pave the way for the effective implementation of SPADE.

This is employment promotion by calling a spade a spade.