USAid launches program to boost higher education

THE United States Agency for International Development (USAid) has launched a five-year, P1.6-billion program (about $30 million) to help Philippine higher education institutions (HEIs) become more globally competitive.

The USAid on Tuesday launched the US-Philippines Partnership for Skills, Innovation and Lifelong Learning (Upskill) Program to strengthen innovation, workforce development, and entrepreneurship in colleges and universities.

The program aims to improve the qualifications and career prospects of Filipino graduates to meet evolving workforce needs and enhance linkages between US and Philippine universities.

The US Embassy in Manila said US President Joseph Biden and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. jointly announced this initiative during the latter’s visit to the White House in May 2023.

“The challenges and opportunities that young people face today in the workplace make college training and education critical for their future success,” said visiting USAid Deputy Assistant Administrator for East Asia and the Pacific Sara Borodin during the program launch at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila.

“Through this new USAid program, the United States government reaffirms its commitment to working with our Filipino partners in transforming the higher education sector,” Borodin said.

The program will bring together American universities, Philippine government agencies engaged in human capital development, and private sector partners to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in HEIs through faculty and staff training, curriculum improvements, and increasing community outreach and technology transfer.

Commission on Higher Education Executive Director Cinderella Filipina Benitez-Jaro said that with the partnership with USAid, the CHEd “will provide unique opportunities for our colleges and universities to continuously innovate in response to the aspirations of the Philippines, and specifically that of our students.”

“Together, we will demonstrate the compelling value of internationally recognized training, cooperative research, and lifelong learning modalities being offered by Philippine higher education,” Benitez-Jaro said.

The Upskill program is implemented by RTI International through a consortium of US universities, which includes Arizona State University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, and Philippine partners such as Edukasyon.ph and the Philippine Business for Education.