QUEZON CITY, (PIA) –The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has turned over on Monday, January 23 mobile training laboratories to 10 regional offices to strengthen its skills training program in far-flung areas of the country.

In a statement, TESDA Director General Danilo P. Cruz, said the MTLs would hasten the delivery of skills development and livelihood programs in far-flung areas, particularly those that are located in identified conflict-affected communities, disaster-prone provinces, and provinces with high poverty incidence.

“The MTLs are training facilities that can be easily transported from one place to another within the province.  It is composed of tools, equipment, and training packages put in a trailer,”Cruz said.

TESDA provided the MTLs to Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), CARAGA, and Regions II, V, VI, VII, VIII, X, XI, and XII, where they will be utilized to provide the necessary training for Photovoltaic Systems Installation NC II, Bread & Pastry Production NC II, Food Processing NC II, Organic Agricultural Production NC II, Carpentry NC II, Plumbing NC II, Electrical Installation Maintenance NC II, and Agricultural Crop Production NC II.

According to TESDA, the MTLs are expected to produce a total of 5,180 enrollees and 6,662 graduates annually.

“These MTLs show that TESDA is committed to providing skills training and livelihood programs to Filipinos, especially to those located in far-flung areas and those belonging to the marginalized sector,” the TESDA chief said.

Meanwhile, TESDA spokesperson Deputy Director General Aniceto D. Bertiz III explained that the MTLs are aligned with the National TESD Plan’s (NTESDP) strategy of TVET for Social Equity for Workforce Inclusion and Poverty Reduction.

“We, in TESDA, are one with the current administration’s thrust to reduce the poverty rate in the country.  We aim to reach disenfranchised youth failing to reach the doorsteps of a tech-voc school and give them learning and economic empowerment,” he said.

Aside from the MTLs, TESDA has also turned over 16 service vehicles to selected regional and provincial offices to further enhance their mobility and capability to provide speedy service.

These are TESDA regional offices in the National Capital Region (NCR) and Regions III, IV-A. Other recipients are TESDA provincial offices in Mt. Province, Ilocos Sur, Isabela, Palawan, Sorsogon, Negros Occidental, Bohol, Samar, Zamboanga del Norte, Bukidnon, Davao de Oro, North Cotabato, and Agusan del Sur. (tesda/pia-ncr)