When the advanced economies had their population bonus, there were a large number of openings for medium-skilled jobs, where workers could expect to build a career and, with hard work and perhaps some luck, advance into highly-paid management-level jobs. Now, with the prevalence of ICT, those jobs are becoming scarcer.
In the ECCU, economic activity declined by 1.8 per cent in 2010, a slower rate compared with 5.4 per cent in 2009. Weak external demand and a reduction in domestic investment contributed to the decline which resulted in the continued contraction of activity in the construction and transport and communications sectors.