ICTs Are Expanding Job Opportunities Worldwide says the World Bank

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are transforming the world of work, creating new job opportunities and making labor markets more innovative, inclusive, and global.

Three trends are driving this shift: greater connectivity, the ability to telecommute and outsource work, and globalization of skills.

According to a new World Bank policy note, “Connecting to Work:  How Information and Communication Technologies Could Help Expand Employment Opportunities,” three trends are driving the increase in ICT-related jobs worldwide:

• Greater connectivity – more than 120 countries now have over 80 percent market penetration of mobile telephones
• Digitization of more aspects of work – today, telecommuting and outsourcing have become standard business practices globally
• More globalized skills – India and the Philippines have become major outsourcing hubs thanks to their English language skills, and other countries are targeting the sector for future growth.

“ICTs are influencing employment both as an industry that creates jobs and as a tool that empowers workers to access new forms of work, in new and more flexible ways,” says Chris Vein, World Bank Chief Innovation Officer for Global ICT Development. “The emerging ICT-enabled employment opportunities matter because countries around the world are looking to create more good jobs, which have positive economic and social implications for workers and for society.”

The new paper looks at ways policymakers can maximize the positive impact of ICTs on employment.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at 

via Connecting to Work: How ICTs Are Expanding Job Opportunities Worldwide.