The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) announced Friday that the unemployment rate decreased to 4.7 percent in July, down from 4.9 percent in July 2023.

This decline brings the year-to-date unemployment rate to 4.4 percent, meeting the nation’s target range of 4.4 to 4.7 percent for this yea, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said Friday.

It showed that 3.1 million more Filipinos gained jobs year-on-year, raising the total number of employed individuals to 47.7 million as of July 2024.

Underemployment also dropped to 12.1 percent in July, down from 15.9 percent the previous year, translating to 1.3 million more Filipinos securing better-quality jobs.

The unemployment rate is comparable to that of major Asian economies and is even better than India’s rate of 7.9 percent and China’s rate of 5.1 percent.

“While we welcome the continuing positive developments in our nation’s labor market, our work certainly does not end there. For its part, NEDA is committed to mobilizing a whole-of-government approach to secure job-generating investments nationwide,” said NEDA Secretary General Arsenio Balisacan.

He added that NEDA is finalizing the Trabaho Para sa Bayan Master Plan, envisioned as the nation’s comprehensive and strategic framework for enhancing job opportunities and work skills for Filipinos.

Labor force participation rate rose to 63.5 percent in July 2024, up from 60 percent in July 2023, indicating that over 3.2 million more Filipinos have entered the labor force.

Meanwhile, the female participation rate improved to 52.4 percent from 47.8 percent within the target range of 51.5 to 53.5 percent.

The country remains on track toward increasing the percentage of wage and salaried workers in private establishments, which stands at 51 percent, within the PDP target range of 50.9 to 51.5 percent for 2024. NEDA Public Affairs