Going by the statistics provided by this year's International Labour Organisation report on world employment, "modernise or perish" has become the mantra of progress for developing nations. This is shown in the high growth rates in East and Southeast Asia, and in economic stagnation in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America.

The main mechanism through which high growth was transmitted into favourable employment performance in Asia was the rapid growth of manufacturing exports. This has led to expanding opportunities for the labour force to shift into more productive and better paid jobs. The growth of manufacturing exports and jobs has in turn been boosted by inflows of foreign direct investment in several countries.