The Informal Sector in Asia

Many contemporary societies are in turmoil for widespread poverty, joblessness, socio-economic polarization and environmental degradation. Every government now utilizes the free market system and profit motive for economic growth and development. No government however is seriously engaged in reducing inequalities, creating employment, provisioning basic services and reversing environmental degradation. As a result, most people, particularly the children, the women and the old work and live precariously. It is in this distressing background that this book analyses the informal sector growth dynamics in Asia, defined by the demographics, economics and market forces of global scale, and explores the scope of using ILOs decent work paradigm as a basis of public policy to reduce human deprivations. The focus is on the informal (a) enterprise for enhancing productivity, (b) labour for ensuring the right to work and rights at work and (c) living environment for increasing access to basic services. The book should be useful to students, researchers and policymakers with interest in development, employment, environment and poverty reduction.