The Department of Education and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority held a historic first joint management committee meeting at L’Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City on Monday, March 17.

“It was a historic first for Philippine education”, Secretary Jose Francisco “Kiko” Benitez, TESDA director general, said.

Benitez said he and Education Secretary Sonny Angara led the meeting to ensure that senior high school- technical vocational livelihood graduates are employable.

“We tackled free TESDA assessments for SHS-TVL grads, TechPro specializations, and Enterprise-Based Training. This is just the beginning of big things ahead,” he said.

The inaugural 2-day meeting highlighted the common agenda of Angara and Benitez on “free NC assessments for SHS-TVL students, a strengthened technical professional track in SHS, and the integration of enterprise-based practices in basic education,” a DepEd statement also said.*