PASIG CITY, July 23, 2019 – The Department of Education (DepEd), through its Bureau of Curriculum Development (BCD), spearheaded a consultative meeting with education partners and stakeholders on the implementation of Republic Act (R.A.) No. 10679, otherwise known as the “Youth Entrepreneurship Act.”
DepEd, together with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) promulgated the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the R.A. which was approved on August 17, 2017.
BCD Director Jocelyn Andaya welcomed the participants and thanked them for heeding DepEd’s request for them to become part of the creation of an entrepreneurship program for K to 12 learners.
Andaya underscored that the promotion of entrepreneurship as a viable option after Senior High School (SHS) has never fully taken off, which DepEd wants to change through this undertaking.
“We believe that entrepreneurship changes the way we live and work. A change in mindset will help make entrepreneurship a viable career option and a way to get ahead in life,” Andaya stated.
She also shared that DepEd intends to create an ecosystem that encourages entrepreneurship and helps in building a progressive economy and culture.
“We dream that one day, the K to 12 graduates will have the entrepreneurial mindset and boldness to put up their own businesses and where government helpsthem achieve their goals.”
BCD also presented an overview of the R.A. and its IRR, while DTI discussed its Youth Entrepreneurship Program. The University of the Philippines Institute of Small Scale Industry (UP-ISSI) tackled the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME) collaboration and partnership.
In closing, OIC Assistant Secretary for Curriculum and Instruction, Director Alma Ruby Torio thanked the education stakeholders for forging partnerships and helping DepEd in its goal to equip the SHS learners with the 21st century skills that will enable them to meet the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
“Let us all collaborate, coordinate, and work together for this is an avenue for us to be of good service to our learners,” Torio concluded.
Other agencies represented in the meeting are the National Youth Commission (NYC), Cooperative Development Authority (CDA), Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), CHED, and the Philippine National Commission for UNESCO.
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