Hawaii’s booming construction industry is expected to help create 20,020 new jobs overall in the state and boost employment by 2.9 percent over a two-year period ending in the first quarter of 2017.

Construction is projected to lead the economic expansion with 12.1 percent growth and 3,880 new jobs, according to the Employment Forecasts for the Short-Term Future publication released Wednesday by the state Department of Labor & Industrial Relations. The forecasts date back to the first quarter of 2015.

“This is certainly good news and confirms that our economy remains strong,” Gov. David Ige said in a statement. “We remain focused on diversifying our economy beyond tourism and the military, which is why I am taking a comprehensive, long-term approach to develop an innovation economy that offers the best promise of high-quality, living-wage jobs in Hawaii.”

Statewide employment will grow to 720,960 in the first quarter of 2017 from 700,940 in the first quarter of 2015, according to the Labor Department.

A surge of condo towers going up in Kakaako will greatly contribute to the uptick in construction jobs to 35,830 from 31,960, the report said.

The professional and business services industry is projected to have the second-fastest growth at 3.6 percent with 2,990 new jobs, bringing the total to 85,610 from 82,620. Much of this growth will be in administrative and support services, which is expected to grow 4.8 percent and create 2,360 new jobs.

Jobs in the trade (retail), transportation and utilities category are expected to grow 2.9 percent with 3,400 new jobs that would raise the total employee count to 121,810 from 118,410.

Retail trade will account for 1,930 of these new jobs, or 2.8 percent growth, while transportation and warehousing will add another 1,010 jobs, or 3.8 percent growth.

Hawaii’s other large industries also will grow but slightly below the 2.9 percent average job growth. Leisure and hospitality will increase 2.7 percent, or by 3,090 jobs, to 116,200 jobs from 113,110 jobs. Education and health services will grow 2.2 percent, or by 3,010 jobs, to 138,380 jobs from 135,370 jobs.

Jobs in services, the largest occupational group, will provide 8,600 openings annually. Many of these jobs will be in food preparation and serving, while others will be in building and grounds cleaning and maintenance.

Retail sales are expected to provide 1,380 job openings, by far the most of any occupation. Also expected are many job openings for waiters and waitresses, cashiers, and food preparation and servers.

“DLIR is enhancing job skills in the workforce as part of the effort to support diversifying the economy by bringing community stakeholders together in advisory boards in select sectors,” Labor Department Director Linda Chu Takayama said. “To remain competitive and productive in the global marketplace, it is crucial to employ a highly skilled workforce and why we have convened workforce advisory boards in agriculture, health care and robotics as a start.”