Marcos Jr. places Tesda under DOLE supervision

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has transferred the overall supervision of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) from its previous attachment to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Under Executive Order (EO) No. 5, signed by Marcos and Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez, the Secretary of Labor and Employment would now be the chairperson of the Tesda board to ensure a more efficient policy and program coordination.

Before Marcos’ EO, Tesda — the state agency mandated to provide technical and skills training and short courses to aspiring Filipino students  — was under the DTI.

“It is the policy of the national government to rationalize the functional structures of agencies with complementary mandates and promote coordination, efficiency, and organizational coherence in the bureaucracy,” the EO said.

“The Tesda is hereby attached to the DOLE for policy and program coordination […] The Secretary of Labor and Employment shall be the Chairperson of the Tesda Board pursuant to Section 7 of RA No. 7796.  The Tesda Board and its Secretariat shall perform their respective functions in accordance with Sections 8 and 10 of RA No. 7796,” it added.

Since Tesda produces skilled personnel sent abroad, the relationship between Tesda and DOLE was positive even before Marcos drafted the EO placing Tesda under DOLE.

READ: Former DOLE Usec Cruz appointed new TESDA chief 

Last July, the President appointed former DOLE Undersecretary Danilo Cruz as the new director general of Tesda, further linking the two offices.

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JPV