PBEd: Australia firms up support to PHL’s education reform initiative

By Andrea E. San Juan @andreasanjuan

THE Philippine Business for Education (PBEd) said the Australian Government has reinforced its commitment to Philippine education reform through a P98.7 million support.

W ith PBEd as their chosen partner, Australian Ambassador to the Philippines HK Yu PSM said, “We will support the Philippines to achieve an education system that provides the skills and knowledge needed for future jobs.”

“Australia believes that quality education is key to a prosperous and productive nation,” the Australian envoy said, noting that they have been a “longstanding” partner to the Philippines and “strong supporter” of the country’s education reform goals.

To help address skills gaps and unemployment, the Australian Government and PBEd said they will work on four focus areas: senior high school curriculum improvement, industry involvement in skills development, improving teacher quality, and enhancing education data collection and assessments.

On reviewing and revising the K to 12 curriculum, PBEd and the Assessment, Curriculum and Technology Research Centre, a joint venture between Australia’s University of Melbourne and the University of the Philippines (UP) will work together to support the plans of the Department of Education (DepEd).

“ These reforms will be important for ensuring that graduates have adequate skills and are more employable,” PBEd said in a statement issued on Wednesday.

In terms of better aligning the skills of workers with the demands of the industry, PBEd said A Future That Works, its workforce development program which is supported by the Australian Government, will “continue its existing efforts by establishing more Sector Skills Councils to undertake labor market studies.”

Meanwhile,toimproveteacherqual- ity, PBEd said it will support the Australia-backed Research Centre for Teacher Quality, which it said is a partnership between the University of New England and the Philippine Normal University.

T he education reforms advocacy group stressed that the partnership will “further develop competencies of teachers and school leaders in curriculum and instruction, expand career progression for teachers, and strengthen the Teacher Education Council that looks into pre-service teacher education reforms.”

A s for enhancing education data collection, PBEd said it will also support DepEd to improve another Australia-backed initiative—the Enhanced Basic Education Information System and Learner Information System.

T his system, the advocacy group noted, serves as the “primary source” of Philippines education data on students, teachers, and schools. Further, PBEd said this collaboration will “enhance” DepEd planning and decision-making.

For her part, PBEd Executive Director Justine Raagas underscored the role of quality education in having a “productive” future workforce.

TRADE between the Philippines and 11 other Asian markets could triple by 2030, according to the latest research conducted by a US logistics firm.

I n an industry study released by the Sandy Springs, Georgia UPS titled “Clearing the Runway for Intra-Asia Trade,” trade growth drivers, potential headwinds, and multi stakeholder action were identified as the factors that could unlock the 2030 opportunity for the Philippines.

T he 12 key markets referred in the study were Asia’s major trade markets, which accounts for 88 percent of intra-Asia trade today, and these markets are expected to consolidate the position further.

UPS said trade within these 12 markets could more than double in value from $6.4 trillion in 2020 to $13.5 trillion in 2030.

UPS said Philippines has the potential to build on the rapid growth in the previous decade, particularly in the manufacturing sector, which could see trade with the Asia 12 more than triple from $ 113 billion in 2020 to $393 billion in 2030.

“ There are also significant opportunities for Filipino businesses in areas such as digitalization, building supply chain resilience and multilateral cooperation in international trade,” UPS said in a news statement.

Four product segments—retail, industrial manufacturing and au- tomotive (IM and A), high-tech, and health care—accounted for 75 percent of the Philippines’ intra-Asia trade in 2020 and are expected to boost growth.

The IM and A segment stands to be the largest by value in 2030, more than trebling from 2020 levels as the country aims to serve as a global and regional hub for the automotive and electronics sectors,” UPS said.

Meanwhile, trade in the hightech segment, which constituted 41 percent of the country’s intraAsia trade in 2020, could more than double in value, riding the wave of digitalization, which will create significant demand in this segment across Asia.

U PS said Philippine-based businesses can plan for both headwinds and opportunities by diversifying supply chains into resilient trade routes and targeting high-value and high-growth trade routes, such as IM and A, healthcare, and retail trade with economies like Japan, as well in the high-tech segment with Hong Kong and Vietnam.

T he company said intra-Asia trade holds incredible potential over the coming decade, anchored on the immense economic success that key regional economies have accomplished in recent years.

T he company also said its global network strength and extensive brokerage expertise has been helping Asian governments, industry partners, and customers navigate global trade over the last five decades.

Tesda aims to produce 500K iSTAR entrep grads by 2023

By Roderick L. Abad @rodrik_28 Contributor

THE Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) said on Wednesday that it’s on track to meet the target of producing half-a-million graduates for its public-private partnership (PPP) initiative that gives training to micro-retailers. I n collaboration with Coca-Cola Philippines, the agency started to provide entrepreneurial skills training to Filipino women in 2011 through the Sari-Sari Store Training and Access to Resources (STAR) Program.

D ue to the Covid-19 pandemic, they signed a memorandum of agreement in December 2019 to elevate this into a blended digital learning platform. Hence, the upgraded version called the iSTAR Program was inaugurated in March 2022.

Actually, we already surpassed the mark of more than 300,000 [finishers]. So by the end of this year, we will hit the mark of 500,000,” Aniceto D. Bertiz III, deputy director general for Tesda operations, told reporters in a sideline interview during the mass graduation of 500 iSTAR beneficiaries held at the Tesda Complex in Taguig.

Apart from this batch produced by the Tesda Women’s Center for Excellence who mostly comes from Metro Manila and other parts of Luzon, a bigger number of completers from the southern part of the country are set to march in the next couple of months.

“ In May, we have more than 2,000 graduates that will be in Mindanao,” he said of such continuous program that is now more accessible to learners “because it transformed or evolved into a digital platform.”

B ertiz is hopeful to reach their goal since the program now caters not only to women but also across all genders and different sectors.

In fact, he revealed that around 19,000 of the 20,000 displaced overseas Filipino workers who enrolled to iSTAR last December have already graduated. T he program’s hybrid training consists of online study, self-paced learning sessions and business coaching classes developed by Tesda and Coca-Cola Philippines to help businesses that were badly hit by the health crisis.

I ntegrated into the Tesda Online Program, the iSTAR Program now offers modules, such as “Safe Stores Education,” “Building Business Mindset,” Planning the Business,” “Managing Business Operations,” “Ensuring Business Sustainability and Success,” and “Access to Business Coaching, Resources, and Peer Mentoring.”

A part from its education aspect, each graduate receives an initial capital of P10,000, either in kind or cash basis, for as long as they comply with the requirements. The amount helps start or expand the beneficiary’s existing business. Additional funding will be given to profitable enterprises for further expansion.

To date, around P3 billion seed fund has been extended to the beneficiaries, according to Bertiz. He cited that the program has been proven effective given its almost 98 percent success rate, based on Tesda surveys.

L auding the iSTAR graduates for finishing the online entrepreneurial skills training, Tesda Director General Danilo P. Cruz urged them to use their learnings to drive economic growth and create jobs for others.

Your micro-retail business is not only a source of income for you, but also a valuable service to your community, as you provide access to goods and services that contribute to the betterment of the quality of life,” he said.

Keep in mind that entrepreneurship is a journey, and there will always be new challenges to face. But as a successful graduate and entrepreneur, you have the skills, knowledge, and drive to overcome any obstacle that comes your way. Keep pushing forward and continue to make a positive impact in your community,” he stressed.

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

SEN. Pia Cayetano is pressing for a review of outdated laws that tend to discriminate women.

In enlisting the majority support of fellow lawmakers, Cayetano is banking on mustering enough votes for the passage of the long needed remedial legislation.

C ayetano has been sewing support of her colleagues to pursue “reviewing existing laws with provisions that are discriminatory against women.”

Delivering a privilege speech, the lawmaker lamented that the Philippines “still has laws that are discriminatory or contain distinctions, exclusions or restrictions against women, including some provisions in the Family Code and the Revised Penal Code.”

W hile Cayetano acknowledged that the Philippines often ranks as one of the most gender-equal countries globally, she warned, “The country has been regressing in gender parity in the last few years and as lawmakers, it is their job to introduce laws that advance the status and protect the rights of women.”

S he added: “As chairperson of the Committee on Sustainable Development Goals, Innovation and Futures Thinking, this representation is committed to building a more sustainable future for women and their children.”

At the same time, the senator affirmed that “the goal is not to give preference to women” reminding that “the goal is to create gender partnership.”