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The president-elect of the USA, Barack Obama says his economic stimulus plan could create or save three to four million jobs, at a time when unemployment rises and the first world power falls into recession.

"The recovery will not come overnight and it is likely that things will get worse before they improve," Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio address.


But then he added: "I am confident that if we join (...), overcome the challenges of our time and write a major new chapter in our history." On Friday, Americans were shaken by the disclosure of official unemployment figures: 7.2% across the country, the highest rate of the last 16 years, with 524,000 jobs lost in December.

In this context, the elected president defended his plan to revitalize the economy, currently under debate in Congress that could reach 800,000 million dollars. "My team and I have been involved in a constructive dialogue with members of Congress in recent days, these last few weeks (...) We have made great progress in these consultations," said Obama in a press conference on Friday.


The successor to George W. Bush bid to create hundreds of thousands of posts in the education sector, which will give schools new classrooms, including computer laboratories and classrooms.

The modernization and improvement of the health system will also generate hundreds of thousands of new charges, said Obama. In particular he cited the digitization of medical records, which not only "saving money" but also "to save lives by minimizing medical errors."


He also said that a report commissioned a team of economists stressed the need for a strategy to boost economic recovery. Without a plan to organize the efforts of financial incentive, the country is exposed to lose between three and four million jobs in the coming months or years.

"If nothing is done, this recession may last for years," said the future head of the White House. In this regard, said that his plan, which promised to reveal just come into office on January 20, will help retain or create jobs, most in the private sector.


Republican side, lawmakers are concerned about rising budget deficit and the possibility of creating hundreds of thousands of public jobs. But Obama said that investment in alternative energy sources will generate about half a million new jobs over the next three years.

Ten days of assuming the presidency of the United States, Obama appealed to Congress and the public to support its economic recovery plan, which amounts to 775,000 million dollars.


The U.S. economy lost more than half a million jobs for the second consecutive time in December, making the unemployment rate climbing to 7.2%, its highest level since January 1993, according to the Labor Department. In all of 2008, the U.S. has lost 2.6 million jobs, which was not the case since 1945.