MINDANAO posted a higher employment rate than the country in general.

And yet, there are several provinces here with more poor families. In fact, more than half of the population (57 percent) is living below the poverty threshold.

And over the past seven years, only the Northern Mindanao region reduced the number of its poor families.

TVET initiatives

One option to reverse the trend is the more aggressive use of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

With TVET, an individual gets technical skills and knowledge at the shortest time possible.

All he needs to do is study for six months to two years, depending on the skills training, and he immediately gets employed at the end of it.

Therefore, one does not have to waste money or time pursuing a four-year college degree to find a job; more so if one does not have ample financial resources.

By taking a TVET course, one has the option to work and continue to go up the education ladder at his own pace.

The Ladderized Education was introduced by both the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and the Commission of Higher Education early last year. In it, one may opt to get a college degree by finishing one skills certificate at a time, step by step, until the highest rung of the ladder is reached. This is applicable for baccalaureate courses in nursing, hotel and restaurant management and engineering.

Through TVET or the ladderized program, the children of a poor family are able to help augment the meager family income through their new-learned skills and find work fast in many service companies, agriculture and manufacturing plants.

Priority skills in Mindanao

There was a survey made among the different industries in Mindanao as to the kind of skills needed to sustain or bring about higher economic activities in different regions.

This was done so that TVET schools and institutions in each region will know what kind of training programs to offer students to match the demands of industry.

In the Zamboanga Peninsula region, there is demand for skilled people in agriculture and fisheries, processed food and construction. Northern Mindanao also needs workers in agriculture, construction and information and communication technology (ICT).

In the Davao region, industries demanding workers are in ICT, agriculture and processed food and beverages; while those in Region 12 are in agriculture, land transport and tourism.

The Caraga region’s needed skills are in furniture and furnishing, agriculture and construction. The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao needs agriculture, construction and automotive skills.

The list of required skills reflects the investment priorities of many regions in Mindanao with agricultural workers still the most in demand, since the island is the country’s food basket.

Tourism is also another industry with promising prospects.

The cities of Davao, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos, Zamboanga are all positioning themselves as prime tourism destinations as well as ICT hubs for call centers, transcription and the like.

Knowledge in construction will always be required since progress will usher in the construction of new buildings, roads and other infrastructure to support growth.

Partners in TVET

The Philippine Australian Human Resource Development Facility (PAHRDF) of Australian-Aid is an active partner of the Mindanao TVET Association (MinTVET).

This association is the biggest network of technical vocational schools association all over the island and is leading efforts to bring about positive changes and developments in TVET.

Through the PAHRDF, the faculty members or teachers of TVET schools are given the opportunity to avail themselves of both short and long term scholarships to Australia to enhance their skills.

This year, approximately 10 teachers left for Sydney to take up courses on curriculum and instructional materials, school management, software development and metal and fabrication.

This will be an annual program between PAHRDF and MinTVET.

The Asian Development Bank is also one of the more active education donors in Mindanao, working in collaboration with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, the Commission of Higher Education and the Mindanao Economic Development Council.

With these developments in mind, TVET is now being looked at with higher respect and TVET graduates are now able to stand proud, knowing that their skills certificate will be their key to success and prosperity.

In the meantime, we must not remove our focus on the skills defined under the National Technical Education and Skills Development Plan 2005-2009 as these are the skills required by the companies.

Presented below are the priority sectors under the plan and the corresponding labor force requirements.

With the help of the government agencies, through its scholarship programs like the Iskolar ng Mahirap sa Pamilya [Scholars of Poor Families] and other programs, we hope that Mindanao TVET is on the right track in helping the government improve the condition of the people of Mindanao.

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