Themes

The year 2020 has been a year of unprecedented events, brought on by the spread of COVID-19 across the world. The pandemic has significant impacts not only on public health and economic growth but also on the environment.

In response to the rapidly changing work landscape in the region, ASEAN’s labour sector has been working hard to ensure that people in the region, especially its youth, will be well equipped with needed skills.

Year 2020 was a year fraught with unprecedented challenges in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet it is the throes of adversity that bring out the best in us, no better exemplified than by how ASEAN has weathered many crises and emerged even stronger and more confident together over the past decades.

Delivering quality education to prepare today’s learners for the challenges of a rapidly changing, highly globalised, and technology-driven world has been the overarching goal of ASEAN Member States for many years.

ASEAN youths are a tech-savvy demographic equipped with a growth mindset and blessed with abundant opportunities. Thus, they bear the important responsibility of making sure the regional digital economy continues to thrive. Their success may also be a key factor in the region’s recovery. But the right policies must be in place to provide them with the most up-to-date skills, reliable digital infrastructure, and enabling ecosystems if this is to be the case.

“Women are naturally nurturing and empathetic. They are intrinsically more suited to caring for children and families.” This worldview, which dominates many cultures to this day, is the epitome of gender essentialism. It appears commonsensical, but it has harmed generations of women—and society at large. It has led to exclusion, discrimination, exploitation, and inequality.