MANILA — Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Director General Guiling Mamondiong is urging all repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), especially those from Kuwait, to join the agency’s second National Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) event on April 5-6.
TESDA’s so-called National TVET Enrollment Day and Jobs Bridging will be held in all the agency’s offices and TESDA Technology Institutions nationwide.
The activity will focus on providing opportunities in the construction sector to help contribute to the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program, as well as in the information technology/business process management (IT-BPM) sector.
Mamondiong noted that in order to assist the distressed OFWs better, the invitation to participate in the National TVET Day must be extended to them, so they could be aware of the agency’s free training, skills upgrading program, and find job opportunities from partner companies during the event.
Based on the Department of Foreign Affairs’ (DFA) records, more than 3,400 OFWs from Kuwait have already been repatriated by the government since February, while the administration has imposed a deployment ban to Kuwait following reports of abuse and maltreatment of the OFWs there.
A Filipino domestic helper in Kuwait, Joanna Demafelis, was murdered and was found inside a freezer. Her employers were the primary suspects.
TESDA has also provided assistance to Demafelis’ kin. Training scholarship, free competence assessment, entrepreneurship training support fund, and starter toolkits were provided to Demafelis’ family.
Meanwhile, TESDA clarified that all unemployed OFWs, even those who came from other countries, are all welcome to attend the jobs fair during the National TVET Day.
Apart from looking for jobs, OFWs are also invited to enroll in different tech-voc courses, which could also help them get better chances of finding new jobs.
The TESDA chief has instructed all of the agency’s directors to assist the OFWs. (Ma. Cristina Arayata/PNA)
