MANILA, Philippines – The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has warned the public against fake national certificates allegedly being sold online.

TESDA Secretary Isidro Lapeña issued the warning following reports about groups on Facebook offering national certificates for different technical vocational courses for a certain amount of money and of employers receiving bogus certificates.

Lapeña said only TESDA offices can issue national certificates to qualified individuals who have passed the assessment. Employers can also verify the authenticity of the certificates.

“Ang tunay na NC po ay hindi for sale. Ang isang indibidwal na nakapasa lamang sa competency assessment ang entitled para magawaran ng NC,” Lapeña said in a statement.

TESDA said it has a Registry of Certified Workers available online so one can check the pool of certified workers for certain occupations nationwide. It can be accessed via the TESDA Website.

Lapeña said the agency is coordinating with authorities to crackdown on the sale of fake TESDA national certificates.

“We also urge the public to report to us if they know someone who sells NC, via our hotline, 8887-7777,” he added.

MANILA, Philippines — The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has announced the suspension of face-to-face training and assessments in areas under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

In a memorandum, TESDA Secretary Isidro Lapeña ordered all TESDA Technology Institutions (TTIs) and Technical Vocational Institutions (TVIs) to suspend face-to-face classes and assessments in ECQ and modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) areas.

Lapeña encouraged the affected TVIs and Assessment Centers (ACs) to shift to online and virtual modes in the conduct of training and assessment during this period.

Meanwhile, Lapeña reminded all Regional and Provincial Offices to strictly monitor and enforce the compliance of all TVIs and ACs to the protocols and guidelines issued by the IATF, TESDA, and their respective local government units (LGUs). AAC

MANILA, Philippines — The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) has announced that the government has already trained close to 3,000 contact tracers and has deployed almost 1,800 of them.

During a virtual public briefing on Wednesday (July 28), TESDA Deputy Director-General Aniceto Bertiz said that aside from the programs allotted for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and individuals who lost their jobs to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, TESDA is also training individuals to become contact tracers.

“We were able to produce 2,978 contact tracers all over the country. Halos 1,800 of those are already hired sa mga local government unit (LGUs) (Almost 1,800 of those are already hired by local government units),” he said.

The TESDA official also said they continuously coordinating with LGUs and other industries for the new contact tracers to be hired especially amid the threat of the Delta variant.

Bertiz, meanwhile, said the free upskill training of TESDA will help in lowering the number of unemployed and underemployed Filipinos in the country.

“Hinuhubog natin ang ating mga kababayan na magkaroon ng bagong kakayahan and at the same time, we are connecting them hanggang kabuhayan (We are honing our fellowmen to acquire new skills and at the same time, we are connecting them to have livelihood),” he said. -AAC