The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has partnered with the Cebu contractors in producing globally competitive construction workers.

TESDA Director General Isidro Lapeña visited this city on Thursday to sign a memorandum of agreement with the Cebu Contractors Association for the establishment of an industry board in Central Visayas.

“The establishment of an industry board in every region is important as this will encourage the participation of our partners from the private sector in improving various aspects of technical vocational education and training, or TVET in the country,” Lapeña said in his speech.

He said TESDA has intensified its efforts “in establishing linkages with industries and key stakeholders so they can be our partners in shaping globally competitive middle-level human resources.”

The program, he added, is a way of ensuring that TESDA’s actions are harmonized with the end-user’s pursuit that the skills the agency has been providing are responsive to the needs and requirements of the industries.

Lapeña said the partnership between the agency and the contractors will uncover a lot of opportunities, as the newly created industry board will serve as the channel of the existing industries in terms of design and implementation of projects, programs, and activities for the technical and vocational education and training scholars.

“We will tap the experts in the construction industries in the development and regular review of our training programs to ensure that what we teach in TESDA is at par with the international standards,” Lapeña further said.

The skills education agency, he said, will work with the board in developing various mechanisms to encourage wider participation in implementing enterprise-based training programs.

“The need of our kababayans (countrymen) for new career opportunities is more than enough reason for us to work closely together to help them survive and recover from the impact of this pandemic,” he added.

Lapeña thanked Engineer Francis Gerard “Jigger” Cañedo for leading the Cebu Contractors Association in partnering with TESDA in producing internationally competitive skilled workers for construction projects, both domestic and abroad.

The board, which has an active involvement with construction industry players, will help address the job-skills mismatch in the country, he said. (PNA)