By Junex Doronio

MANILA — Nine months before the 2025 midterm polls, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) for voter education.

Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia said that under the MOA, voter education would be integrated into the TESDA curriculum.

“Dito po…’yung integration ng voter education sa curriculum na ino-offer ng TESDA,” Garcia said in his speech during the MOA signing.

TESDA Director General Secretary Suharto Mangundadatu led the TESDA delegation.

Garcia, who led the Comelec delegation, said voter education will be promoted through pre-taped seminars, and orientations on the registration process and requirements for voters participating in the national and local elections in 2025.

“Hindi kaya ng Comelec na isagawa ang halalan ng isa lang…The business of election is not only the business of Comelec, but the business of the entire country. There should be a whole of nation approach when it comes to elections,” the poll body chief explained.

(el Amigo/mnm)

By Junex Doronio

MANILA — With their common goal to further enhance the capabilities and performance of the employees of the lower chamber of Congress, House of Representatives Secretary General Reginald “Reggie” Velasco has lauded the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) as they inked their Memorandum of Agreement (MOA).

Velasco, who recently signed the MOA on behalf of the House of Representatives, credited Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez for the idea of collaborating with TESDA.

Velasco underscored that Romualdez told him “to find ways of increasing the fringe benefits of the (House) employees, congressional staff and everybody working in Congress, including their dependents.”

For his part, TESDA Director General Suharto Mangudadatu, who was a former Sultan Kudarat 1st district Representative, noted that the collaboration is also an opportunity for TESDA and the House to provide opportunities to the unemployed, underemployed, out-of-school youths, and to those belonging to the marginalized group to become productive and self-sufficient.

Baguio City Rep. Mark Go, the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education chairperson said the collaboration with TESDA is crucial for continuously advancing in life, with upskilling and adopting a life-learning stance, regardless of age.

(el Amigo/MNM)

By Liza Soriano

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is set to expand its network of guidance counselors and career advocates to strengthen their career, vocational, and employment counseling services for job seekers.

Bureau of Local Employment (BLE) Director Patrick Patriwirawan Jr. announced that the Department aims to address the barriers faced by job seekers wherever they are, through the Career Development Support Program (CDSP).

CDSP aims to assist individuals in finding suitable employment through career counseling, identifying appropriate upskilling or reskilling interventions through vocational counseling, and promoting the chosen career path through employment counseling.

In order to immediately implement such an initiative, Patriwirawan gave an orientation to the CDSP to the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) managers in local governments, career guidance advocates, as well as DOLE officials and staff in the regions.

He also emphasized the importance of the program to meet the challenges and opportunities facing the “future of work” which is characterized by disruption, digital transformation, and hybrid work.

Department of Education (DepEd), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), PESO Managers Association of the Philippines (PMAP), and Federation of Career Guidance Advocates Network of the Philippines were the groups who are helping DOLE for the implementation of the program.

(AI/MNM)

Image Courtesy of: Reddit

SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian, the co-chairperson of EDCOM 2, and Senator Joel Villanueva, a commissioner of EDCOM 2 and chair of the Senate Basic Education Committee, have raised concerns regarding the government’s expenditure of an estimated P2.77 billion on community-based TESDA scholars who did not undergo assessment.

Villanueva highlighted the significant number of graduates from community-based programs, citing TESDA data indicating that 36.21% of their graduates originate from these programs.

Among the 44,000 individuals enrolled in community-based TESDA programs this year, only 17,995 have graduated to date. Out of this group, just 4,086 have obtained a Certificate of Competency (CoC), and of those, only 3,937 have been awarded a National Certificate. Villanueva posed the question, “What happened to the balance?”

Gatchalian emphasized the government’s investment in training through scholarship programs but stressed the futility of this training without assessment and CoC, which are essential for securing employment opportunities.

A critical issue identified was the shortage of assessors and challenges in scheduling assessments, with TESDA Deputy Director General Aniceto Bertiz III noting that the agency currently has 7,593 assessors.

Considering an estimated 1.5 million clients in the entire TVET sector in the country, this equates to 197 clients per assessor, highlighting the severe shortage of assessors.

Gatchalian also advocated for the certification of Senior High School – Technical Vocational Livelihood (SHS-TVL) track students to enhance their employability. He proposed allocating P1 billion in the budget for the certification of approximately 400,000 SHS-TVL students.

He stressed the importance of assessments and certifications, emphasizing that “training is not the end goal” and that around 98% of SHS-TVL learners who take the certification exams pass, making it a worthwhile investment.

TESDA Director General Suharto Mangudadatu suggested training teachers and district supervisors from the Department of Education as TESDA trainers and assessors. However, Gatchalian acknowledged the need for contingency plans, as DepEd might have reservations about this proposal. (AI/MNM)

By Vergel Garcia

TECHNICAL Education and Skills Development Authority Director General Suharto Mangudadatu assured the public that tech-voc graduates are job ready, and that technical vocational education and training remains the quickest and most cost-effective way for skilling, reskilling and upskilling Filipino workers.

He issued the statement after some lawmakers lamented that tech-voc graduates earn below minimum wage.

“Our lawmakers may be looking at employment data gathered during the pandemic, when employers were forced to reduce their employees’ work hours due to prevailing restrictions,” Mangudadatu said.

“Now that restrictions have been lifted and the country’s recovery is truly underway, our tech-voc graduates are again contributing significantly to the economy,” he added.

He said cases of employers giving below minimum salaries should immediately be addressed.

“I encourage our kababayans to report employers that give their personnel remunerations that are below the mandatory minimum wages to the Department of Labor. We have laws to protect our workers, and these laws should be upheld and followed to the letter,” the TESDA chief said.

Mangudadatu said that tech-voc training programs are developed in close coordination with the industry to ensure that the knowledge, skills, and abilities are aligned with employers’ need.

“We continuously enter into partnerships with public and private companies and associations to get a very good idea of what employers and the industry require when it comes to workers’ competencies. By working with TESDA, these entities are essentially manifesting their confidence in Philippine TVET and its graduates,” he said.

A study conducted by TESDA showed that more than 50 percent of tech-voc trainees have either had some college studies or are college graduates. This may indicate that employers prefer applicants that have employable and in-demand skills in addition to college degrees.

Thus, more than 90 percent of overseas Filipino workers secure their National Certificates before starting their jobs abroad, as these certificates attest to their abilities.

MANILA — According to a recent survey conducted by Manila-based firm PUBLiCUS Asia, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) has emerged as the most trusted government agency, gaining the highest approval and trust ratings among registered voters.

In the Pahayag 2023 Second Quarter Survey conducted from June 7 to 12, Tesda obtained an approval rating of 72 percent and a trust rating of 58 percent.

Previously, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) held the top position, but they now share second to third places with the Department of Science and Technology (DoST), both receiving 66 percent approval and 56 percent trust ratings.

In response to the survey results, Col. Jorry Baclor, AFP Public Affairs Office chief, expressed gratitude for the trust and confidence bestowed upon the military organization by the Filipino people. He acknowledged the challenge to further enhance their performance as the protectors of the people and the state.

Baclor mentioned that the AFP has reached out to PUBLiCUS to gain a better understanding of areas that need improvement in their services, ensuring that they continue to deserve the trust and approval of the Filipino populace.

He extended congratulations to Tesda for securing the top spot, highlighting their role as reliable partners in providing better opportunities to people in areas where the military is deployed, including former rebels. He commended Tesda’s effective efforts in reaching underprivileged Filipinos and acknowledged the appreciation they receive from the people they serve.

While the AFP experienced a slight decline, the approval rating of the DoST remained stable, indicating the continued trust of the public in the agency’s scientific initiatives and technological advancements, according to PUBLiCUS.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) secured the fourth position with a 65 percent approval rate. The Department of Tourism (DoT) and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) witnessed a decrease in their approval ratings, placing fifth and sixth, respectively.

The Department of Education (DepEd) maintained its approval rating of 63 percent, while the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) improved its approval rating from 58 percent in the previous survey to 60 percent.

DepEd held a trust rating of 52 percent, closely followed by BSP and DSWD with 51 percent.

DoT and DoLE received trust ratings of 49 percent and 46 percent, respectively.

PUBLiCUS noted in the survey results that the decline in BSP’s ratings “may be linked” to the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF), which only requires the signature of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to become law after being passed by Congress.

BSP experienced the most significant decline among respondents aged 18 to 29 years old, as well as those belonging to middle-income households and non-Catholics.

The Department of Finance (DoF) also witnessed a slip in ratings, as respondents from Northern Central Luzon, middle-income households, and families of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) expressed opposition to the MIF, as reported by PUBLiCUS.

Over the course of a year, the Department of Health (DoH) steadily gained public approval, with an approval rating of 62 percent and a trust rating of 50 percent, marking a 12 percentage point increase from the first quarter of 2022.

PUBLiCUS attributed the DoH’s consistent rise in approval to Maria Rosario Vegeire, who took over as caretaker of the department following Dr. Francisco Duque 3rd. Vegeire received a commendation for her commendable performance in filling the void within the DoH as the country began its recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The upward trend for the DoH was primarily driven by respondents from the Visayas, individuals belonging to middle-high income households, and government workers.

The Department of Migrant Workers, led by Secretary Susan “Toots” Ople, garnered approval from over half of the respondents.

On the other hand, the Philippine National Police (PNP) received poor ratings in the survey, with an approval rating dropping from 54 percent to 49 percent and a trust rating decreasing from 43 percent to 39 percent.

PUBLiCUS mentioned that the low ratings of the AFP and PNP were mainly influenced by respondents from Mindanao, high-income households, and middle-income households, respectively.

The survey included 1,500 respondents distributed across the National Capital Region, North Central Luzon, South Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. The margin of error was +/- 3 percent.

PUBLiCUS ensured that only registered voters were polled to provide an accurate representation of the sentiments of the voting population.

(ai/mtvn)