Announcement of Philippines to Receive Twenty-Four Million Four Hundred Thousand Dollars Loan for Vocational Training on September 23, 1982

. . FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE eWorldBank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A.• Telephone: (202) 477-1234 BANK NEWS RELEASE N0.83/11 Contact: Sundaram Sankaran September 23, 1982 ( 202) 477-3962 PHILIPPINES TO RECEIVE $24.4 MILLION LOAN FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING The Philippines will borrow $24.4 million for a vocational training project, the World Bank announced today. The project will improve the management of industrial training and provide facilities for expanding such trGining. Designed to assist the government's industrial development strategy through the provision of job entry and upgrading training for apprentices as well as workers and supervisors in the manufacturing and service sectors, the project will support the regional diversification strategy while helping to meet the needs of medium and small industries. To improve the management of industrial training, the project will support the reorganization and expansion of the National Manpower and Youth Council secretariat, the upgrading of the council's manpower planning and training • evaluation capability, and the establishment of a Management Information System and an Equipment Maintenance Service. A training scheme for seven priority industrial and service subsectors will be provided. The scheme will be administered by sectoral training units and carried out through a system of contracts. _These contracts will require approved training entities to provide specific training and will obligate employers to share the costs. Under the scheme, training will be provided over a four-year period for 76,000 people including 25,000 apprentices, 28,000 adult workers, and 16,150 supervisors in the following subsectors: metals and engineering; shoes and leather goods; wood products; construction; automotive; garments; and hotels and restaurants. Four new regional manpower training centers will be constructed to serve provincial areas. Nine existing ones will receive additional equipment. In Manila, a Construction Industry Training Center, which will provtde about 3,000 training places, will be established. The $41.7 million project also includes consulting services and provisions for expanding the trade testing and certification program. The World Bank loan is for 20 years, including five years of grace, with interest at 11.6% per annum. The loan also carries an annual commitment charge of • 0.75% on undisbursed balances, and a front-end fee of 1.5% on the amount of the loan • NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents.