THE TECHNICAL Education and Skills Development Authority hopes to train more coffee farmers under its new joint training program with Nestlè Philippines.

TESDA Director General Danilo Cruz said more slots will be earmarked to train farmers in coffee production as well as to develop a pool of trainers and assessors for the coffee sub-sector

“This project is doing very well, and we will no doubt see the impact of this training on the country’s coffee production in a very short while,” he said.

“We know that upgrading the knowledge and skills of our farmers in coffee production will ultimately result in improving the quality of their products as well as improve their competitiveness,” he added.

The TESDA – NPI Partnership on Upskilling of Workers and Trainers in Coffee Production aims to promote entrepreneurship and enhance competency standards in coffee production and other related training programs.

Started in mid-2021, the program
has trained more than 700 farmers on Coffee Production Level II. The free training is being conducted in Bukidnon and Sultan Kudarat.

In 2021, 473 coffee growers and coffee farm workers graduated from the training program. So far this year, 230 have finished the course, while another 268 are undergoing training.

TESDA targets to produce more farmer-beneficiaries through the continued implementation of the joint program.

“We have found a worthwhile partner in Nestlè Philippines to help us further strengthen the country’s coffee industry,” the TESDA chief said.

Nestlè Philippines has provided experts, particularly agronomists, to help Tesda develop training regulations, competency standards, and competency assessment tools.

The company identifies the farmer-beneficiaries for the project and provides each a coffee starter toolkit. The kit includes workbooks, record books, visual aids and other materials for the training.