BUZZ BEAT MEDIA

Education Secretary Sonny Angara on Monday chaired a high-level meeting of the Philippine Qualifications Framework-National Coordinating Council (PQF-NCC), bringing together the country’s trifocal education agencies (DepEd, CHED, TESDA) in an increasingly coordinated effort to align the education and labor sectors under the Marcos administration’s workforce development agenda.

The meeting drew key officials including Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairman J. Prospero De Vera III, TESDA Director General Kiko Benitez, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Undersecretary Carmela Torres, Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) Assistant Commissioner Louis Valera, and SEAMEO INNOTECH Centre Director Majah-Leah Ravago. The gathering underscored growing institutional support for reforms that aim to harmonize learning outcomes, strengthen labor mobility, and align Philippine qualifications with international standards.

“What was once a seldom-seen level of collaboration is now becoming the standard. Our trifocal education system is leading the way in building a system that connects education more directly with employment,” Secretary Angara said.

During the meeting, Angara laid out three strategic priorities:

–  The adoption of unified, sustainable national learning outcome standards across all education and training levels; 

– The development of seamless pathways for learner and worker mobility across sectors and industries; 

– The alignment of Philippine qualifications with international frameworks to boost global recognition and competitiveness.

“The PQF is a comprehensive system that sets transparent, unified standards across education, training, and employment. By aligning competencies and skills with both local and global demands, the PQF shall empower Filipinos with the qualifications and mobility necessary to thrive in an increasingly evolving world,” said Angara.

The Education Secretary also emphasized the need to integrate critical and strategic thinking, as well as positive learning mindsets—qualities essential for lifelong learning and professional resilience.

Moving forward, DepEd will begin integrating PQF-aligned competencies into the K to 12 curriculum, enhance teacher training to support competency-based learning, and work with TESDA and CHED to streamline program offerings in line with labor market demands. Engagement with industry stakeholders will also be intensified to ensure that reforms are grounded in real-world skills requirement.

The PQF-NCC, for its part, will move to establish mechanisms for efforts in joint labor market scanning, curriculum alignment, industry consultation, regional information drive, and qualifications standards updating. Officials said these steps are crucial to making education and training systems more agile, targeted, and responsive to both local and global economic shifts.

“We must build a system where every Filipino can transform learning into lasting opportunity, where skills open doors, and every qualification bears the strength of our nation’s ambition to drive inclusive and sustained growth,” Angara concluded.

*All Photos from DepEd