Senator Joel Villanueva, principal author and sponsor of Republic Act No. 12063 or the Enterprise-Based Education and Training (EBET) Framework Act welcomed the signing of the measure as a significant milestone in the country’s effort to address the perennial problem of job-skills mismatch.
Villanueva expressed his gratitude to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for entrusting him with the responsibility of leading the push for the urgent passage of this game-changing measure in the Senate which is also one of the priority measures in the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC).
“The signing of this landmark legislation marks a crucial step in empowering our workforce and addressing unemployment and underemployment, which has long been a challenge in the Philippines,” Villanueva, chairperson of the Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resource Development, said.
Latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the country’s unemployment rate has dropped to 3.7% in September 2024, from 4.5% in August 2024. However, the increase in underemployment to 11.9% in September 2024 from 11.2% in August 2024 clearly indicates the continuing issue of job-skills mismatch in the country.
“By focusing on enterprise-based education and training, we are not only aligning education with market needs, which will directly translate into more job opportunities, it will boost innovations on micro credentials and stackable qualifications of our workers’ AI readiness and other emerging technologies,” he said.
The Commissioner of the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM2) stated that EBET will help pave the way for more training programs focused on higher-level technology qualifications.
Only seven percent of their total courses currently offer these advanced technology programs, equivalent to aNational Certificate (NC IV), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority said.
The EBET Act will further strengthen enterprise-based training with different training access points such as General EBET, apprenticeship and upskilling. These programs have proven to be among the most effective in producing skilled workers, with employment rates reaching as high as 92%, according to studies on the employment of Tech-Voc graduates from 2020 and 2021.
Under the EBET Framework, training programs will be competency-based and industry-driven, ensuring that trainees acquire the skills needed by employers in key sectors. Additionally, the law emphasizes the importance of safeguarding the rights and occupational safety of trainees, ensuring that they are provided with meaningful, secure learning experiences.
“The EBET Act will ensure that our educational system keeps pace with the evolving demands of the labor market, helping bridge the skills gap that currently exists in many industries,” Villanueva said.
“With the active participation of employers, technical-vocational institutions, and the government, we are creating a more robust and responsive training system,” he added.
