The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) will establish two Regional Training and Innovation Centers in every region of the Philippines, including the Negros Island Region (NIR), Secretary Jose Francisco Benitez, TEDSA director general, said on Thursday, March 20.
“NIR as a new region is in search of where the regional training and innovation centers should be,” Benitez said at a press conference at the Seda Hotel in Bacolod City.
One training center will be funded by the Asian Development Bank and the other by the Department of Budget and Management as a counterpart, he said.
“That’s another thing maybe that Negros Island Region can, in fact, look forward to,” Benitez said.
The TESDA NIR regional head is Niña Connie Dodd.
Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez is also pushing to turn Bacolod City into a skills development training hub, using the Bacolod City College as the facility to do so, the secretary said.
Bacolod houses the largest number of tech-voc institutions in Negros Occidental, he said.
Gov . Eugenio Jose Lacson has also proposed for a TESDA collaboration with the Negros Occidental Language and IT Center, he added.
This will lead to a surge in TESDA-driven trainings in Bacolod and Negros Occidental, the Secretary Benitez said.
Benitez also said the TESDA will also be providing national certification assessments for Senior High School-Technical-Vocational-Livelihood (SHS-TVL) track students to enable them to avail of jobs even if they do not pursue college degrees.
The TESDA national certificates will certify the senior high school graduates’ skills for employment, he said.
There is an oversupply of college graduates in the Philippines and they generally are mismatched to the skills that industry requires, he said.
TESDA’s national certifications are derived and verified by industry boards, he said.
The assessments that TESDA gives are designed to be the kind of skills that industries expect for specific occupations, he said.
Gov. Lacson reaffirmed his support and commitment to the programs of TESDA during its 20th General Directorate Conference 2025 at Seda Hotel on Wednesday.
The governor said that through skills training and development programs, TESDA has opened doors for countless Negrenses — helping them find employment, start businesses, and contribute meaningfully to their families and communities.
He also said that Negros Occidental is especially proud that the Director General of TESDA is Benitez, the former representative of the 3rd District of the province.
“His leadership, dedication, and vision have already contributed greatly to our province, and we are confident that the entire country will now benefit from his skills and unwavering commitment to advancing technical education and skills development,” Lacson said.
The Negros Occidental provincial government recognizes “the immense impact of technical and vocational education in driving economic growth, reducing unemployment, and improving the quality of life for our people,” he added.*