• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The establishment of Regional Training and Innovation Centers by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Negros Island Region, got a boost with the donation of two properties for two sites in the cities of Victorias and Talisay in Negros Occidental.
The Beneterra Consolidated Corp. donated an area of 25,000 square meters in Victorias City, while the Symbiosis Management and Development Corp. donated a 10,000 square-meter lot in Talisay City.
Raoul Benedicto, who represented the Beneterra Consolidated Corporation and Antonio Montinola for the Symbiosis Management and Development Corporation, separately signed the deeds of donation with TESDA Director General Jose Francisco Benitez during the recognition of Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET)-Industry partners held on August 23 in Talisay City.
Benitez thanked the two companies for helping TESDA in NIR.
“This will go a long way in ensuring that the ecosystem of technical-vocational training in NIR will not only be healthy, will not only be sustainable, but will lead, in fact, to the innovations and the transformations that the country as a whole needs,” Benitez said in his speech.
The Regional Training Innovation Center (RTIC), according to Benitez, is designed to have an incubation site, training rooms, and a maker space for prototyping.
As a template, RTIC can accommodate 3,000 to 5,000 students, depending on the type of training it can offer, he added.
The construction of RTIC facilities will be funded by the Asian Development Fund, with a counterpart from the Department of Budget and Management, Benitez said.
Region 6 has an RTIC located in Iloilo, while Cebu hosts the RTIC in Region 7.
Each region has a specialization of three to four skills domains, including logistics, agri-fisheries, IT, and creative industries, according to the TESDA secretary.
As far as NIR is concerned, Benitez said they have yet to identify the skills domain for the new region, as they are still awaiting the decision of its Regional Development Council.
The TESDA chief is hoping that the two RTICs will be operational in 2027.
TESDA also formally recognized its partners, who registered programs under the Enterprise-Based Education and Training (EBET) and Micro credential Programs.
The Certificate of TVET Program Registration for EBET was awarded to the Homeworld Construction Corporation, Masonry NC I and II – Florentina Realty and Development of Bacolod Corporation, EIM NC II – Panasiatic Cal Centers Inc., Contact Center Services NC II – Telephilippines Inc. and TP Near-Hire; and Repair Training Center Talisay for Repair and Maintain Roofing Systems, Level 2.
The Negros Occidental Language and Information Technology Center (NOLITC) received a certificate of TVET Program Registration for Micro-credential Course (CPTR MCC).
The Association of Negros Producers, Inc. (ANP) was formally recognized by TESDA as the Regional Industry Technical – Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Board for Creative Sector in the Negros Island Region (NIR).*
