17 March 2015
The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) will take its expertise on developing quality workforce to the fore when it hosts the High Level Policy Dialogue on Human Capacity Building (HLPD-HCB) in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (PNG) on May 6 and 7.
Although it will be conducted in Papua New Guinea, the policy dialogue on HCB remains part of the country's hosting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2015, which will focus on the theme "Building inclusive economies, building a better world.”
After almost two decades, the Philippines will host and chair the APEC anew. It first hosted the APEC meetings in 1996.
"TESDA is honored to co-host with Papua New Guinea the discussions on human capacity building. It's our vocation, which we do through skills development of trainers and trainees," TESDA Director General Joel Villanueva said.
"Investing in people is a theme that resonates with all the APEC member-nations, something they saw as necessary in sustaining their economies," he added.
Recognizing that having a skilled workforce is key to competitiveness, Villanueva said there is a need to align the education, including technical-vocational training, to the needs of the industry. Equally important is developing strategic approaches to enhance the productivity of medium, small and micro-enterprises, and to link them to the global value chain.
Last February 3 to 4, the preparatory meeting for the HLPD-HCB was held in Subic Freeport Zone, a lead-up to the main activity in Port Moresby.
The pre-meeting, which was chaired by TESDA Deputy Director General Irene Isaac, was attended by 75 participants from 15 APEC-member economies including the Philippines. It saw the drafting of the joint statement which shall be the output of the HLPD on HCB.
Notable were the participation of the new Lead Shepherd from Russia, which was a show of support from the leadership of the Human Resource Development Working Group, and the Chair of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) which also demonstrated the private sector's support to human resource development.
Investing in human capital development is one of the four priorities of the Philippines for the APEC 2015 hosting since human resources play a vital role in achieving the goal of each of the member economies towards enhanced job generation, improved productive employment opportunities, and greater economic growth.
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