Phl Singapore ink MOU on work skills upgrade

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority have partnered with the Singaporean government to implement programs to upgrade the skills of the Philippine labor force. 

In a statement yesterday, the DTI said a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed for human capital development and skills upgrading of workforce with SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG), a statutory board under the Ministry of Education.

The MOU was signed during the state visit of Singapore President Halimah Yacob as the countries celebrate 50 years of bilateral relations.

“Through this MOU, we seek to partner with the Singaporean government and training institutions to improve the preparedness of our people for the needs of industry and the demands of the global market, especially in the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said.

Under the MOU, the two countries would work together on human capital development knowledge-sharing and workforce capacity-building.

In addition, the two countries would conduct relevant studies for the crafting of human capital development and skills training cooperation roadmap.

Human capital and skills development form part of the Philippines’ Inclusive Innovation Industrial Strategy and of the Inclusive Filipinnovation and Entrepreneurship Roadmap.

In Singapore, SSG is taking the lead in the implementation of the national SkillsFuture movement to promote a culture and holistic system of lifelong learning and to strengthen the ecosystem of quality education and training.

The DTI expects the Philippines to benefit from the partnership.

“Singapore’s experience in industry and workforce development exemplifies the strong coordination between and among government, industry, training and the education sector, which we aim to foster in the country as we address skills mismatch and prepare our workers for future production,” Trade Undersecretary Rafaelita Aldaba said.