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Stephen C. Freidheim Symposium on Global Economics: The Global Jobs Challenge

CFR | 2026-06-26 | economy

Topics: AI, China, Europe, Indo-Pacific, Middle East, Taiwan, Trade, United States

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English Summary

The global jobs challenge is bifurcated: developing nations face a massive 'demographic time bomb' due to 1.2 billion young people entering the workforce with insufficient job creation; while developed economies must adapt to labor market disruption caused by artificial intelligence. The core finding is that solving poverty and unemployment requires moving beyond fragmented projects (e.g., only building hospitals or only providing vaccines). Instead, policy must adopt a holistic approach—simultaneously developing physical infrastructure, human capital, and governance—to enable private sector growth and create sustainable opportunities for all citizens.

中文摘要

全球就業挑戰呈現兩極化:發展中國家面臨「人口結構爆點」(demographic time bomb)的巨大壓力,因為有12億年輕人湧入勞動力市場,但缺乏足夠的職位創造;而已開發經濟體則必須應對人工智慧帶來的勞動市場顛覆。核心發現指出,解決貧困和失業不能僅依賴零散的項目(例如只建設醫院或只提供疫苗)。相反地,政策必須採取全面性的整體策略——同時發展實體基礎設施、人力資本和治理能力——從而促進私營部門成長,並為所有公民創造可持續的機會。

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