By Alfonso T. Ruda
DIPOLOG CITY - A total of 73 Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries of Zamboanga del Norte successfully passed the free assessment jointly conducted by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) through the Social Livelihood Program (SLP) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) through its National Technical and Vocational Education and Training Competency Assessment and Certification Program recently.
The said activity has been conceptualized through a collaborative effort of the two government agencies to help the 4Ps beneficiaries, who have skills in carpentry, masonry, plumbing, welding, and electrical installation, to obtain National Certificate (NC) II for possible employment here and abroad.
Among the 73 passers, 23 are for carpentry; 26 for masonry; 19 for Electrical Installation Management (EIM), and 5 for plumbing.
Those who failed to pass the assessment would again take the said assessment to be able to get NC II certification from TESDA.
Provincial Director Nilda Espiritusanto of TESDA-Zamboanga del Norte commended the DSWD-SLP personnel in coordinating and collaborating with them for the conduct of the said activity. “This initiative is our agency’s way of supporting the Pantawid participants in improving their livelihood capabilities,” Espiritusanto said.
Some 122 4Ps beneficiaries from the municipalities of Manukan, Roxas, Katipunan, Polanco, Piñan, Mutia, La Libertad, Sibutad, and Rizal, including Dipolog City and Dapitan City participated in the two-day assessment, which was simultaneously conducted at the Senior Citizens Covered Court at Barangay Sta. Isabel and Dipolog Medical Center College Foundation Inc. Assessment Center in Barangay Sta. Filomena on July 31 to Aug. 1, 2014.