Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Secretary Isidro Lapeña on Saturday, Aug. 21, cited the agency's accomplishments in light of the "inconsistencies" in the 2020 Commission on Audit (COA) report.

"We would like to emphasize that TVET is a wise investment dahil sa bawat tao na na-train at nakapagtrabaho, nakakatulong pa tayo sa lima pa niyang kapamilya upang maging productive members ng society (because every person who is trained and able to work, we are able to help his five other family members to become productive members of society)," Lapeña said during President Duterte's pre-recorded "Talk to the People" address aired on Saturday.

He said the employment rate of TESDA graduates has increased from 71.87 percent in 2017 to 84.15 percent in 2019.

"Noong nakaraang taon, sa gitna ng pandemya ay nakapagtala pa rin tayo ng 70.15 percent employment rate. Ibig sabihin, pito sa kada sampung TESDA graduates ang nagkaroon ng hanapbuhay noong 2020 (Last year, in the midst of the pandemic we still managed to record a 70.15 percent employment rate. That means seven out of 10 TESDA graduates have a job in 2020)," Lapeña pointed out.

"Sa kabila ng pandemya, patuloy po tayong nagbibigay ng pagsasanay sa displaced workers upang sila ay mabigyan ng skills at makahanap ng trabaho o magsimula ng kanilang sariling negosyo (Despite the pandemic, we continue to provide training to displaced workers so that they can be given skills and find employment or start their own businesses)," he added.

Moreover, he said TESDA was able to transition to a flexible learning delivery arrangement, which is a combined blended, distance, online, and face-to-face learning depending on the community quarantine status in an area.

Over 1.7 million Filipinos have registered from March 2020 to July 2021 for TESDA's 100 free online courses, he added.

"TESDA is fully aware of its role in this nation's recovery from the present crisis. Nakahanda po ang aming tanggapan lalong lalo na sa pagsisiguro na ang ating human resources ay nakakasabay sa mga challenges ng new normal at future work environments (Our agency is ready to ensure that our human resources keep pace with the challenges of the new normal and future work environments)," Lapeña said.

He noted that P4.95 billion worth of funds are allotted for the modernization of its technology institutions, upgrading of facilities and state-of-the-art learning systems, and review of training regulations and standards based on industry needs.