MANILA -- The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) said Monday that it has strengthened its reach and skills training provision for rebel returnees.
"TESDA is on full swing to help the former rebels gain skills training and national certificates for competencies they need the most to start a life outside the armed communities," the agency said in a statement.
Rebel returnees are among TESDA's "special clients", along with drug surrenderers and indigenous peoples.
Earlier, TESDA Secretary Isidro Lapeña told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) that the agency will train about 4,800 “special clients” starting April.
The total target beneficiaries are 100,000, he added.
Under TESDA's Rural Employment Generation for Social Equity (REGSE), TESDA will use community-based training for both IPs and former rebels.
"REGSE shall cover activities on capability enhancement, entrepreneurship development, among others," he said.
He said the agency also has a mobile training program where it deploys trainers and TVET (technical and vocational education and training) providers to conduct training on site, which aims to teach unserved and underserved areas.
The 4,800 beneficiaries who will begin their training in April will come from Kalabugao and Talakag, Bukidnon and from Camp Darul Arqam in Lanao del Sur, as well other identified IP sites and MILF/MNLF camps, according to Lapeña.
Lapeña has instructed regional and provincial directors to take further steps in helping rebel returnees find employment or livelihood.
For this month alone, TESDA-Isabela and TESDA-Bohol have started their initiatives in line with REGSE.
TESDA-Bohol has started training 125 former rebels in various courses such as masonry, carpentry, electrical installation and maintenance, welding, bread and pastry production and food processing.
TESDA-Isabela, on the other hand, has just launched the "From Arms to Farms" project, wherein 25 rebel returnees will be trained on organic agriculture production.
Meanwhile, based on TESDA's records, there were 1,259 rebel returnees who enrolled in different tech-voc courses in 2018. (PNA)
