By Patrick Villalobos, Contributor

Journalists and their dependents can now avail of free skills training from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), following the agency’s execution of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the National Press Club (NPC). 

Per the pact, NPC members or any two immediate members of their family, as well as those of the Maguindanao Massacre victims, are eligible. 

The MOA was signed by Tesda Secretary Isidro Lapeña and NPC President Rolando Gonzalo. Joining them were Tesda Deputy Director General Lina Sarmiento and NPC Vice President Paul Gutierrez as witnesses.

Lapeña said that this initiative forms part of the agency’s thrust to help alleviate the living condition of society’s marginalized sectors.

“As long as they are qualified to be a Tesda scholar, we are ready to provide them the skills training they need to start something which may help them during this pandemic,” he said.

The beneficiaries will be accepted under the Training for Work Scholarship Program of Tesda, which focuses on “key employment generators” in the areas of agri-fishery, tourism, information technology, electronics, automotive, and other priority manufacturing industries.

Tesda is mandated to identify or qualify the technical vocational institutions where the beneficiaries wil be trained in accordance to its existing rules and guidelines. 

The agency will, likewise, award them with National Certificates and Certificates of Competency once they successfully finished their courses and passed the assessment.