Alcantara-led Alsons Power Group is extending help to the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) for the capacity enhancement of technically-skilled workers in Mindanao, primarily in the SOCSKSARGEN region which is among the core communities of its power projects.

Alsons Power said its partnership with TESDA and the local governments in the region had been targeted at  meeting the increasing demand for skilled workers – most specifically those in the technical-vocational (tech-voc) sphere of education in the country.

“The partnership aims to offer free training and education to a minimum of 1,800 individuals from Mindanao in the next two years,” the company conveyed.

Alsons Power Vice President Ruben G. Tungpalan indicated the company is “dedicated to more than just supplying electricity,” stressing further that “we recognize that investing in technical and vocational training for residents is a concrete manifestation of our brand promise - We Power with Care. We want to unlock the potential of the Mindanaoans, by offering them avenues for employment or entrepreneurship.”

Alsons Power noted that Mindanao’s stature of having roughly 40-percent of the 22 million Filipinos living below the poverty line, places it in a position wherein it would be badly in need of expanding employment opportunities for its people.

These skilled workers, according to the company, are very essential at this point when Mindanao is “experiencing notable growth in economic zones and industrial centers. This has led to increased economic activity and many opportunities for skilled workers.”

Citing a 2021 study of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Alcantara firm echoed the multilateral lending firm’s stance on “the importance of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in developing graduates with in-demand technical skills and essential soft skills needed to thrive in a dynamic job market.”

By far, Alsons Power cited that the government’s focus on “bridging the skills gap between industries and the labor workforce,” serves as a critical step in enhancing the capacity of the needed core of technical workforce for businesses.

The company asserted it has deep understanding of that need, given that the significant base of its business operations has always been in Mindanao.

On account of that then, Alsons Power reiterated that it will be “stepping up its community development efforts in terms of building the capabilities of the residents in its host communities.”

The power firm added that for this year, it will even be more “focused on talent development to meet the growing demand for a skilled workforce capable of adapting to a changing economic environment in the area.”