Zamboanga City bags 2013 TESDA Regional Kabalikat Award

Post date: Apr 09, 2014 7:52:48 AM

The City of Zamboanga City is this year’s TESDA Regional Kabalikat Awardee under the LGU-City Category.

The awarding ceremony was held on August 23, 2013 at the TESDA Women’s Center, TESDA Complex in Taguig City, Metro Manila. Congressman Celso Lobregat, who served as the City Mayor for three terms, received the award for the LGU.

The City of Zamboanga has been engaged in technical-vocational education and training (TVET) programs since February 19, 1992 when it established two technical vocational institutions in city – the Ayala Technical Vocational School and the Vitali Technical Vocational School. With this initiative, high school graduates who are unable to proceed and acquire a college degree, were given the opportunity to enroll in voc – tech courses in Agri-Business, Automotive Technology, Garments and Textile Technology, among other trades.

To further expand the program and support more students to acquire such knowledge and skills, Ordinance 153 was established on August 2, 1994 which provided scholarship grants to poor and deserving high school graduates amounting to two thousand pesos (P2,000.00) every semester to cover tuition, cost of training materials and school supplies.

In June 19, 2008, Ordinance No. 332 otherwise known as the Zamboanga City Scholarship Program provided two kinds of educational assistance – (1) Academic and (2) Tech- Voc Program. Two million pesos a year was allotted for tech-voc scholarship program. Since 2009, the total number of beneficiaries reached almost a thousand in the tech-voc sector alone.

Apart from the city’s educational programs, the City Government of Zamboanga is also a prime and active implementer of Livelihood Training Programs funded by Gender and Development (GAD) and implemented through the efforts of the Office of the City Agriculturist.

The Public Employment Service Office, which serves as the employment arm of the city, regularly organizes Job Fairs in coordination with several recruitment/placement agencies for overseas and local employment as well as monitors job vacancies.

The City Government is also continuously providing infrastructure projects to improve the facilities of the vocational schools and colleges like the construction of school buildings, comfort rooms, and training center.

The Kabalikat Award is one of TESDA’s reward mechanisms in giving due recognition and honor to its outstanding partners in the promotion and enhancement of technical education and skills development (TESD).

The award is conferred to outstanding local government units (LGUs), legislative partners, institutions, and private firms/companies cognizant of their best practices and their contribution to the promotion and development of the country’s middle-level manpower in terms of skills, abilities, proper work attitude and values. (TESDA 9/Jocelyn wee)