US launches $30-M program to boost PH tertiary education
The University of the Philippines – Diliman campus in Quezon City (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)
MANILA, Philippines — The government of the United States, through its US Agency for International Development (USAID), has launched a program aimed at strengthening the state of Philippine higher education and making it more receptive to global demands.
The US-Philippines Partnership for Skills, Innovation, and Lifelong Learning Program, has a $30 million budget, or around P1.6 billion, and will run for five years.
“The challenges and opportunities that young people face today in the workplace make college training and education critical for their future success,” Sara Borodin, USAID deputy assistant administrator for East Asia and the Pacific, said on Tuesday.
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The program will enjoin learning institutions in the US with Philippine agencies to implement changes in Philippine higher education institutions, such as faculty and staff training and improvements in curriculum subjects.
It will also be implemented by the research institute RTI International, with other US universities.
“Through this new USAID program, the United States government reaffirms its commitment to working with our Filipino partners in transforming the higher education sector,” Borodin added.
Meanwhile, Commission on Higher Education Executive Director Cinderella Benitez-Jaro said that this partnership will aid in the agency’s development of Philippine higher education institutes.
“With this partnership with USAID, the Commission on Higher Education will provide unique opportunities for our colleges and universities to continuously innovate in response to the aspirations of the Philippines, and specifically that of our students,” Benitez-Jaro said.
In May 2023, US President Joe Biden and President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. announced the initiative during the latter’s state visit to the US.
