MEDIA RELEASE
Released By:
Gallus
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mrs Chris
Gallus, today announced an $8.8 million increase in Australia's assistance to
the Philippine technical and vocational education and training sector.
Australia's assistance will help the Technical Education and Skills
Development Authority (TESDA) ensure its graduates have the skills needed to
meet the demands of Filipino industry.
Mrs Gallus visited TESDA during a recent visit to the Philippines and was
briefed by TESDA Director-General Lazo and senior staff.
'It was clear that our assistance in improving the ability of TESDA to ensure
a high quality, appropriate education for its students was highly valued,' she
said.
'It is because Australia's technical and vocational system is highly regarded
both in the Philippines and internationally.'
The project was a win-win for Australia, Mrs Gallus said.
The Australian contractor implementing Australia's assistance, the Overseas
Projects Corporation of Victoria/International Training Australia, has won the
consultancy services contract for a complementary $US92.0 million Asian
Development Bank loan to assist technical and vocation education development in
the Philippines.
Mrs Gallus said this placed Australia at the centre of Philippine efforts to
reform its technical and vocation education system and provided another
opportunity for Australia to showcase its expertise to the region.
Mrs Gallus said Australians should be proud of the high quality of their aid
and positive impact it was having on the region.
Contact:
Craig Bildstien (Office of the Parliamentary Secretary)
02 6277 4840 /
0407 604 437
Jo Elsom (AusAID)
02 6206 4960 / 0412 804 489