BUDGET Secretary Amenah Pangandaman has affirmed the government’s commitment to foster education and holistic skills development for the youth by allocating P15.2 billion for various programs offered by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.

“Access to quality education will also be at the forefront of the government’s education agenda through the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education,” she said, stressing that the government will invest heavily in human capital development through education.

Pangandaman said P3.4 billion will be used for TESDA’s Free Technical-Vocational Education and Training initiative, which will benefit 38,179 enrollees and 10,126 graduates.

Meanwhile, P200 million in education assistance will go to the Private Educational Student Financial Assistance program to provide training fees and allowances for 9,708 students and 8,737 graduates.

Also, P1.8 billion was earmarked for the Supporting Innovation in the Philippine Technical and Vocational Education and Training System program.

Deemed as an effective alternative in responding to the progressively globalized, technology-centric, and knowledge-driven market, the SIPTVETS program is intended to align the preparedness of the Filipino workforce, particularly the mid-level sector, to international competitiveness.

It aims not only to enhance the quality of local skills training programs and augmenting training facilities and equipment but also to build the capacity of trainers.

TESDA was also allotted P3.2 billion to fund the Training for Work Scholarship program. This initiative is designed to offer targeted skills training to address gaps in knowledge and fulfill the necessary job requirements identified by priority industries and sectors.

The Training for Work Scholarship program has set its sights on empowering 147,990 students.

To address the pervasive issue of poverty in the informal sector, TESDA will launch a strategic initiative known as the Special Training for Employment Program designed to offer not only expert training but also viable employment opportunities.

For this project, P1.3 billion was allocated. The substantial funding will be primarily utilized to cover the allowance and starter toolkits for the anticipated 47,664 program enrollees, as well as the 42,897 prospective graduates.

Meanwhile, the Tulong Trabaho scholarship initiative, a program devised to combat unemployment and discrepancies in job skills, has been allocated a budget of P1 billion. This program provides Selected Training Programs to the expected 48,653 program enrollees and 43,787 potential graduates.