Philippines pursues US$250 million loan to improve vocational training
The Department of Finance is seeking World Bank Board approval in 2026 for a project covering four employment sectors.
A Philippine vocational training project is being put forward for US$250 million in World Bank financing, with approval sought before 2026 ends. The Department of Finance said on November 11 that it had endorsed the proposed loan to the bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) will head the project, called Boosting Employability in Strategic Technical and Vocational Education Training Sectors (BEST). According to the department, it seeks to improve Filipino workers’ job prospects and productivity through changes to technical and vocational programmes.
Those changes aim to make training more equitably accessible, increase certification rates and better match labour-market requirements. The sectors covered are construction, manufacturing, agri-fisheries, and information and communications technology.
The department linked BEST to three national frameworks: the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028, the National Technical Education and Skills Development Plan 2023-2028, and the Trabaho Para sa Bayan Plan 2025-2034. It also said the initiative supports Sustainable Development Goal 4, which addresses equitable access to quality education and opportunities for lifelong learning.
