CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has rolled out free training to residents in two identified priority villages in Aurora Province to help address poverty which is one of the root causes of insurgency.
The move is in support to the campign of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) in Aurora.
TESDA Regional Director Balmyrson Valdez said on Friday the campaign is to improve livelihood and employment opportunities among communities in the province through skills enhancement and training.
Valdez added that a total of 50 residents in Barangay Cadayacan in Maria Aurora town, and Barangay Pimentel in San Luis have started training on the production of organic fertilizer under the Special Training for Employment Program (STEP).
STEP is a community-based training program that seeks to address the specific skills needs of the communities and promote employment, through entrepreneurial, self-employment, and service-oriented activities.
The TESDA official said various skills training would be provided to residents in far-flung villages where the participants would be given a chance to start their businesses or learn new skills for alternative livelihood.
“TESDA’s commitment is to provide interventions to help the country by providing livelihood opportunities to those living in vulnerable areas,” Valdez said in a statement.
He added that TESDA has various scholarships and livelihood programs for the beneficiaries such as members of the communist terrorist groups who decided to return to the government fold, and the residents of various geographically isolated and disadvantaged communities, including indigenous peoples in far-flung areas of the country. (PNA)
