Negrense landowners have donated land for the establishment of two Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Regional Training and Innovation Centers (RTICs) for the Negros Island Region.
Secretary Francisco “Kiko” Benitez, TESDA’s director general, and the donors signed the deeds of donation during the Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET)-Industry Partnerships and Milestone Ceremony held at Nature’s Village Resort in Talisay City on Saturday, August 23.
The Symbiosis Management and Development Corp., represented by Antonio Montinola, donated a 10,000-square-meter lot in Barangay Matab-ang, Talisay City, while Beneterra Consolidated Corp., represented by Raoul Benedicto, donated about 25,000 square meters in Victorias City.
Raoul Benedicto and TESDA Director General Jose Francisco Benitez (3rd and 4th from left)*
The construction of the two RTIC facilities in Victorias and Talisay are waiting for additional funding approval from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Benitez said.
The aim is for the new centers to train about 5,000 students a year, he added.
The RTIC facilities will serve as training, research, innovation, and startup hubs for learners, a demonstration and partner facility for other TESDA technology institutions and technical-vocational institutions (TVIs), and a research and development (R&D) facility for the industry.
The centers will be equipped to provide technology demonstration services, R&D services, and incubation and business startup services to learners, industry partners, and public and private TVIs in the region.
Benitez noted that the job market is increasingly becoming skills-based.
“Before, one would not be accepted for a job without a college diploma,” he said. “Now, four out of five companies are willing to hire even just senior high school graduates if they have certified skills.”
On Saturday, TESDA also recognized its partners who registered in its Enterprise-Based Education and Training (EBET) and Microcredential Programs.
These partners are Homeworld Construction Corporation, Florentina Realty and Development of Bacolod Corp., Telephilippines Inc., Panasiatic Call Centers Inc., and the Negros Occidental Language and Information Technology Center.
“By registering programs under the Enterprise-Based Education and Training, or EBET, and micro-credentials, you are ensuring that our trainees are not only competent but also industry-ready,” Benitez said.
“Enterprises can now dictate what skills and competencies they need, and TESDA now needs to respond in as flexible and quick a manner as we possibly can, in order to ensure that we respond to a volatile, complex, and ambiguous world of work”, he added.*