Manpower shortage slows building boom, infra plan

CEBU, Philippines - The shortage of skilled workers in the construction industry must be addressed amid the continued construction boom and the government's massive infrastructure plan.

In an interview on Tuesday, Joey Bondoc, research manager at Colliers International Philippines, said the lack of skilled workers, including construction workers and civil engineers, is one of the risks facing the industry today.

"We experience construction delays in terms of office completion and in residential," Bondoc said.

He said the problem is seen to worsen if not properly addressed by stakeholders.

This is especially crucial considering that the Duterte administration is ramping up its infrastructure program, thus there will be a need for more skilled workers to realize the infrastructure projects on the pipeline.

"In Cebu, we have the Cebu-Cordova bridge project, the Mactan airport and road projects by DPWH," he said.

Quoting the Department of Labor and Employment, Bondoc said the not all of the 150,000 registered civil engineers in the country are employable – meaning they don't pass the standards of contractors.

That's why, he said, some developers such as 8990 Holdings and Ayala Land put up their own training centers to address this gap. 

In an earlier interview with Subdivision and Housing Developers Association national president Christopher Narciso, he said the construction boom is expected to continue its momentum on the back of sustained economic fundamentals.

"The construction boom is a result of the good economic condition in our country," he said. "The numbers speak for itself. The supply is far less than the new demand every year. There is also the backlog."

In its 2016 report, Timetric’s Construction Intelligence Center (CIC) noted the Philippine construction sector is expected to grow in the next four years, reaching $47.0 billion in 2020 boosted by the residential and the infrastructure markets.

CIC "forecast the Philippine construction industry to rise from $30.2 billion in 2015 to $47.0 billion in 2020, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.22 percent,” read the report entitled Construction in the Philippines-Key Trends and Opportunities to 2020.

The CIC report, which provides data and analysis on the global construction industry, also noted that the growth would root from infrastructure improvement, “favorable” public-private partnerships and the prolonged expansion of residential and commercial buildings.

The residential market is seen to account for as much as 33.9 percent of the industry’s total value in 2020 — the largest contributor to the Philippine construction industry in the succeeding years, driven by the expanding middle-class population, urbanization of underprivileged areas and housing projects for low-and middle-income groups. On the other hand, the infrastructure market is expected to be the second largest contributor and the fastest growth sector in the construction industry, the report said, noting the said market to reach $14.7 billion in 2020 at a CAGR of 14.14 percent.

This is driven by government's ambitious infrastructure spending plan to develop high-speed rail links, highways and sea ports through PPPs. (FREEMAN)