PH is Inaugural Chair of Newly Launched ASEAN TVET Council
MANILA 21 September 2020 – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Technical and Vocational Education and Training Council (ATC) was officially launched during the High-Level Human Resource Development (HRD) Conference, which was hosted by Viet Nam on 16 September 2020. The ceremony was held virtually and livestreamed through online platforms and attended by delegates from ASEAN Member States, relevant United Nations (UN) agencies, and external partners. The Philippines, through the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), is the inaugural Chair of the ATC from 2020-2022.
In his opening remarks, TESDA Secretary Isidro S. Lapeña thanked ASEAN Member States and the ASEAN Secretariat for their support in establishing the ATC at the 36th Summit in June 2020. Secretary Lapeña recalled that the initiative stemmed from the challenges posed by the 4th Industrial Revolution, which was just starting to gain traction in 2017, and the uncertainties of the digital and technological transformation made the Philippines realize the need for a unified approach among the key players in skills development both from the supply and demand sides.
ASEAN-PH Director-General Junever M. Mahilum-West of the Office of ASEAN Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) represented Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones, the ASEAN Education Ministers’ Meeting (ASED) Chair, and delivered the statement for the adoption of the Roadmap of the ASEAN Declaration on HRD for the Changing World of Work.
The Roadmap will serve as the region’s guide in operationalizing the ASEAN Declaration on HRD for the Changing World of Work. The Philippines as the ASED Chair commits its full support towards the implementation of the Roadmap and the development of future-ready, competitive, and resilient ASEAN human resources.
Director-General Mahilum-West also participated in the panel discussion on Educational and Training Systems that Promote 21st Century Skills. She emphasized the importance of partnerships in operationalizing the HRD Roadmap. ASEAN sectoral bodies and stakeholders should strengthen their cooperation through information sharing, exchanges of experiences and best practices, joint learning, capacity building, and conduct of regular multi-stakeholders’ meetings to monitor the progress of the region’s initiatives.
The ATC seeks to provide a platform for coordination, research and development on innovations, and monitoring of programs for TVET advancement in the region. It was proposed by the Philippines during its ASEAN Chairship in 2017.
The Philippines, through TESDA, will host the first meeting of the ATC in 2021. The video presentation of the Philippines’ inaugural chairship of the ATC may be accessed through this link: https://youtu.be/FqVLHtKueZM. END
