Visayas-based Cebuanimation Network has been chosen as one of the five cooperatives that will receive funding grants from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Photo from ADB
ADB said information technology-animation is one of the four priority industry sectors identified to receive the enterprise-led workplace skills training under its SkillsUpNet Philippines (SUNph) program.
The SkillsUpNet Philippines (SUNPh) program is an innovative skills-delivery scheme led by employers in select locations, in which they band together to form networks and apply for grants on a competitive basis to finance short-term skills training for their workers and managers.
Under SUNPh, grants ranging from $20,000 to $80,000 are awarded to five networks of enterprises in five priority sectors.
The program is part of the government’s National Employment Recovery Strategy 2021–2022 aimed at improving workers’ access to jobs, livelihoods, and training and supporting the private sector in creating sustainable work opportunities.
“We all know that the Covid-19 pandemic caused major disruptions to employment and widened the skills–jobs mismatch in the Philippines,” said ADB vice-president Ahmed M. Saeed.
“Through SkillsUpNet Philippines, we are helping the government with one innovative solution to addressing skills – jobs mismatches in the labor market, retooling and reskilling Filipino workers to raise productivity, and improving employees’ prospects for better opportunities and higher incomes,” said Saeed.
The other priority industry sectors to receive the ADB grants are construction, agribusiness, and tourism. The program also includes women-led enterprises as a fifth sector to receive training grants for management coaching and other management-related training.
Under the first phase of the program, the other awardees were Dagos Tabi Albay Micro and Small Accommodation Enterprises Network for the tourism sector, Cebu Constructors’ Network for construction, Kapehan Sa Davao for agribusiness, and Sulong Davao Business Owned by Women for women-led enterprises.
Sixty-six enterprises and nearly 600 workers from the five networks will benefit from the enterprise-led skills training scheme.
SUNPh is being implemented as a pilot program, with the skills-training grant scheme targeted to be offered later to more sectors in more locations across the country.
