Vice President Duterte Pursues to Raise Quality Technical and Vocational Education in Southeast Asia in Visit to SEAMEO VOCTECH in Brunei
Vice President Sara Z. Duterte (center) poses for a photo with Ambassador of the Philippines to Brunei Darussalam Marian Jocelyn R. Tirol-Ignacio (center left), Brunei Ministry of Education (MOE) Permanent Secretary for Core Education Dr. Shamsiah Zuraini Kanchanawati (center right), and MOE and SEAMEO officials. (Photo courtesy of SEAMEO VOCTECH)
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN 15 June 2023 — Vice President Sara Z. Duterte, in her capacity as Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Council President, visited the SEAMEO VOCTECH TVET Regional Center in Brunei Darussalam on 12 June 2023.
The Vice President was accompanied by Ambassador of the Philippines to Brunei Darussalam Marian Jocelyn R. Tirol-Ignacio and Department of Education (DepEd) Assistant Secretary Sunshine Charry A. Fajarda.
Welcoming the Vice President to the SEAMEO VOCTECH Center were Ministry of Education (MoE) Permanent Secretary for Core Education Dr. Shamsiah Zuraini Kanchanawati, Permanent Secretary for Higher Education Dr. Haji Azman bin Ahmad, Deputy Permanent Secretary for Higher Education Dr. Chin Wei Keh, and SEAMEO VOCTECH officials, headed by Center Director Alias bin Haji Abu Bakar.
In her efforts to examine strategies which could be used to further raise the quality of education in Southeast Asia, Vice President Duterte was briefed on the center’s achievements for fiscal year 2022-2023, including the conduct of 45 training programmes and workshops, developments on the center’s ongoing research readiness of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0) in Southeast Asia, and the recent launch of the ASEAN TVET Council web page.
SEAMEO VOCTECH is one of the 26 SEAMEO centers in the region and was established on 28 August 1990 in Brunei Darussalam. Its mission is to assist SEAMEO Member States in advancing their TVET systems by delivering programs and services that contribute to sustainable development in Southeast Asia.
During the visit, the Vice President also officially launched the new SEAMEO VOCTECH website before witnessing the signing of two memoranda of understanding (MOU) between SEAMEO VOCTECH and Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD), and SEAMEO VOCTECH and Philippines Normal University (PNU).
The MOUs signaled the institutions' collaboration in the delivery of training, professional development programs, and technical support for capacity building and other training initiatives for human resource development.
The Vice President concluded her visit by planting a tree to commemorate the event.
Delegates from the Office of the Vice President, senior officials from MOE, representatives from the SEAMEO Secretariat (SEAMES), headed by Director Datuk Dr. Habibah binti Abdul Rahim, and officers and staff of the Philippine Embassy in Brunei, were also present.
Vice President Sara Z. Duterte assumed the Presidency of the SEAMEO Council during the 52nd SEAMEO VOCTECH Council Conference hosted by the Philippines in Manila from 8 to 10 February 2023. The visit to the center is part of the official program during her visit to Brunei Darussalam from 11 to 13 June 2023. END
Vice President Sara Z. Duterte in a group photo with with Ambassador of the Philippines to Brunei Darussalam Marian Jocelyn R. Tirol-Ignacio and senior officials of MOE and SEAMEO. (Brunei PE photo by Philip Adrian G. Fernandez)
Vice President Sara Z. Duterte poses for a group photo after witnessing the signing of MOUs. (Photo courtesy of SEAMEO VOCTECH)
Vice President Sara Z. Duterte is ushered by Center Director Alias bin Haji Abu Bakar during her visit to SEAMEO VOCTECH. (Brunei PE photo by Philip Adrian G. Fernandez)
For more information, visit https://www.bruneipe.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.philippine-embassybrunei.org or https://www.facebook.com/PHinBrunei/, https://twitter.com/PHinBrunei or https://www.instagram.com/phinbrunei/.