THE Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) said it will seek a 10% share of the education budget, citing the need to accommodate more trainees availing of its courses.
TESDA Director General Danilo P. Cruz told reporters on the sidelines of a Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) conference in Makati City on Wednesday that demand has grown for its training programs.
“Our total budget in education I think is more or less P900 billion. TESDA’s part of that is only P16 billion. Our budget should be increased. Our scholarship (programs) already (account for) P12 billion,” Mr. Cruz said.
“There is much to be done. Even the training programs of government agencies, we are the ones implementing them. The housing program of the government (needs) a training program for the people who will build the structures. We don’t have many carpenters and masons,” he added.
Under the P5.268-trillion 2023 national government budget, the education sector accounts for P895.2 billion.
“The increase should at least not less than 10% of the total education budget,” Mr. Cruz added.
For 2023, Mr. Cruz said the TESDA is targeting 1.8 million enrollees for the various technical vocational (tech-voc) courses. Last year these programs graduated 1.2 million.
“Most of the local and foreign companies, aside from the diploma, are now asking for a national skill certification. Many companies in the developed countries, such as the United Arab Emirates, are doing this,” Mr. Cruz said.
“The biggest courses now involve construction. We have a shortage of construction workers. Agriculture is the second most in-demand; number three is tourism,” he added. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave