The third season of the Capitol’s Sugbo Kahanas program has come to an end, and a total of 3,599 Cebuanos have acquired technical and vocational skills in at least 20 programs that they can use to make their lives better.
On Nov. 25, over 600 of them finally received their national certificates (NCII) from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), as well as training allowances and starter tool kits from the Capitol, giving them that much-needed push to jumpstart their own business ventures.
“Ibibida po ng TESDA ang Sugbo Kahanas program as a prime example of how we can synergize local government initiatives with TESDA’s policies to drive inclusive and targeted development,” TESDA Sec. Jose Francisco “Kiko” Benitez, who graced the ceremony, said.
“Patunay po ang success ng programa na ito na kapag nagtulungan ng TESDA, ang LGU, at TVET providers, marami tayong mababago na mga buhay,” he added.
The said program, with a budget allocation of P100 million for this season and for each of the two seasons prior, provides qualified Cebuano beneficiaries with free technical and vocational skills training in partnership with TESDA and Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) facilities.
All in all, beginning season 1, the program has helped 11,736 Cebuanos, giving them an opportunity to land gainful employment here and abroad; as well as start their own business.
P200M BUDGET FOR SEASON 4
Gov. Gwen Garcia, the architect behind the ultra-successful program, said it has been her desire for the Cebuanos, a decidedly proud people, to uphold their dignity and not fall victim to the mendicant culture that is prevalent nowadays, heavily relying on the government for their sustenance and needs.
That is why her programs, she said, are designed to help Cebuanos help themselves — like the Sugbo Kahanas program.
“In Cebu, we do not believe in nurturing mendicancy. We would rather help Cebuanos help themselves,” Gov. Gwen said in her speech.
“We give them the proper tools, the proper opportunities so that they may be able to start a livelihood, to earn a decent living in order to make their children proud. Over here in Cebu, we respect the dignity of each and every Cebuano,” she added.
As a sign of commitment, Gov. Gwen announced that the season 4 of the program will have a bigger allocation.
“We will now increase budget for Sugbo Kahanas Season 4 to P200 million. This will be distributed, this time, equitably. We will now consider the population, not the number of barangays. We will consider the population of your constituencies in each of the districts, including the Lone District of Mandaue,” the governor said. | with reports from BJR