Pangasinan agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) and their household members are set to benefit from a new scholarship program focused on technical skills development. This initiative aligns with intervention for technical skills, one of Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary Conrado M. Estrella III’s nine-point agenda.
The DAR Pangasinan Provincial Office partnered with the Provincial Training Center (PTC) – Urdaneta City, a TESDA institution, to provide skills training for ARBs. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed on March 26, 2024, by DAR Pangasinan PARPO II Charlotte Lasmarias and TESDA Region 1 Regional Director Joel M. Pilotin, formalized this collaboration.
Under the MOA, TESDA, through PTC-Urdaneta City, will offer scholarship funds for community-based skills training programs. TESDA will also conduct free assessments and certifications for ARBs and household members identified by DAR Pangasinan.
DAR Pangasinan, as its part, will provide starter toolkits containing workbooks, records books, visual aids, and other training materials to identified ARB and ARB household member scholars. Additionally, DAR Pangasinan will assist graduates in finding employment and monitor the program’s overall implementation.