20 February 2013
Secretary Joel Villanueva, director general of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) joined the country's innovators and young guns from a wide range of industries and background as one of the Devex Manila 40 Under 40 International Development Leaders.
Villanueva received the award from Devex for his "influence on the development agenda and impact on development results in the country or abroad."
At the helm of TESDA, Villanueva revolutionized technical vocational education and training and made it more attractive to Filipinos by introducing avant-garde programs such as online courses, mobile training, green skills, and quality assessment and certification.
"To be young and successful is already a feat. But to be influential, to impel real change in the way things have been done before and to inspire others to follow is something else," Villanueva said.
"I wasn't so conscious about this until Devex gave me the awakening through this award, and I couldn't be more grateful. Now I can say when I reach 40 that aging came with purpose," the 37-year-old TESDA chief said.
Villanueva was honored along the other young awardees from various fields in a reception Tuesday (February 19) in Makati City.
As the world's largest community of aid and development professionals, Devex, through its 40 and Under 40 Program, recognizes and celebrates the important work of next generation leaders in the international development community across the world.
Following events in Washington D.C. in 2010 and London in 2011, the group selected the Philippines as the first developing country to host the event.
The awardees were chosen from a pool of more than 250 candidates who underwent screening by the selection committee.
Villanueva was appointed by President Benigno Aquino III as TESDA director general in July 2010. Prior to this, he served three terms, or a total of nine years, in the House of Representatives as representative of the partylist Citizens Battle Against Corruption.
In Congress, he did not let his young age get in the way of coming up with legislative measures that sought to vastly improve the country's system of governance. He authored and co-authored bills that benefitted not just the youth, but senior citizens, overseas Filipino workers, the marginalized sectors of society, and the entire Filipino nation as well.
He sponsored important measures like Republic Act 9485 that sought to reduce bureaucratic red tape, the Senior Citizens' Act, Absentee Voting Act and Juvenile Justice Act. He was among the original proponents of the Right to Information Law.
Villanueva is married and has two kids
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