ACADEMY FOR ENTREPRENEURS SOUGHT

Sen. Joel Villanueva called for a shift in mindset from wage employment to self-employment for young graduates through the establishment of the Philippine Entrepreneurs Academy.

The senator made this call in his sponsorship of Senate Bill No. 2205 under Committee Report No. 585, creating the said Academy that provides degree programs and training for entrepreneurship.

Villanueva, Chair of the Senate Committee on Higher, Technical and Vocational Education, said that the academy "can be a catalyst for change" to spur growth in the country's economy.

"The Philippine Entrepreneurs Academy can help shift the mindset of young people from wage employment to self-employment. It can also stimulate the establishment of high-value enterprises or MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) in the country," he said in his speech.

"We see the academy facilitating the growth of MSMEs and Pinoy entrepreneurs that will invigorate our economy by creating jobs, new technologies, and increasing productivity," he added .

The senator said that MSMEs continue to be the backbone of our economy, making up 99 percent of businesses in the country, contributing to 25 percent of the country's total exports, and employing roughly 2/3 of the total workforce.

Entrepreneurship for the new normal

Villanueva, also the Chair of the Senate Committee on Labor and Employment, said that the lockdowns during the current pandemic caused massive layoffs and downsizing, shifting traditional work into remote working.

"Filipinos have to think of more innovative ways of making a living in this pandemic. Some have resorted to becoming entrepreneurs and establishing businesses in the MSME sector," he said.

Villanueva also said that current "new normal" trends and strict lockdowns led to enterprising Filipinos adopting digital services and starting online selling businesses.

He added that the pandemic has hastened digital transformation in the Philippines, as jobs are no longer tied to factories or offices and the workplace can be anywhere where there is internet connection and a smartphone or laptop.

"We need to nurture our future entrepreneurs and digipreneurs (digtal entrepreneurs) for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in the country. This Academy is an intervention that will help business-minded people capitalize on the opportunities that the new normal presents," the senator said.

According to Villanueva, proper education, training and support can change the mindset of would-be entrepreneurs to see opportunities during times of hardship. "With the Academy, we can help Filipinos create sustainable businesses for themselves and their families and provide employment opportunities for others," he said.

TESDAMAN approved

The former Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Director General cited the success stories from his former agency in the TESDA Specialista Technopreneurship Program as proof for the necessity of an entrepreneurship Academy

"Mayroon po tayong Academy for sports, police, military, merchant marines, at iba pa. Napapanahon na ang pagtatatag ng Academy para naman sa mga Pinoy entrepreneurs," he said.

The proposed measure establishes campuses that will provide degree programs, technical-vocational courses, and entrepreneurship development training in the fields of agriculture, trade, technology, and manufacturing.

These campuses, to be founded in Baguio City and Clark, Pampanga, will formalize and integrate programs and courses developed by TESDA, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Science and Technology, and other government agencies.

ACADEMY PARA SA ENTREPRENEURS, ISINULONG

Panawagan ni Sen. Joel Villanueva na magbabago ng mindset ang ating mga graduate mula wage employment patungong self-employment, sa tulong ng pagtatatag ng Philippine Entrepreneurs Academy.

Hinain ng senador ang panawagang ito sa kanyang sponsorship speech para sa Senate Bill No. 2205 sa ilalim ng Committee Report No. 585 na nagtatayo ng naturang Academy na may mga degree program at training para sa entrepreneurship.

Sabi ni Villanueva, na Chair ng Senate Committee on Higher, Technical and Vocational Education, "catalyst for change" ang academy para tulungang umangat ang ekonomiya ng bansa.

Aniya, tinutulungan din nito ang paglago ng mga high-value enterprises o MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) sa bansa.

"Napapadali po ng Academy ang paglago ng mga MSME na magpapasigla sa ating ekonomiya sa pamamagitan ng pagdagdag ng trabaho, teknolohiya, at produksyon," sabi ni Villanueva.

Sinabi rin ng senador na mga MSME pa rin ang sandigan ng ekonomiya sa bansa, na kumakatawan sa 99 porsyento ng mga negosyo sa bansa, umaambag ng 25 porsyento ng pambansang exports, at umaako sa ? ng kabuuang bilang ng manggagawa sa bansa.

Entrepreneurship sa "new normal"

Bilang pinuno rin ng Senate Committee on Labor and Employment, sinabi ni Villanueva na nagbago ang tradisyunal na pagtatrabaho patungo sa remote working dahil sa mga lockdown sa kasalukuyang pandemya, na nagdulot ng mga kawalan at pagbabawas ng mga trabaho.

"Kailangang mag-isip ang mga Pilipino ng iba pang paraan para maghanapbuhay ngayong pandemya. Dahil dito, naging entrepreneur sila at nagtayo ng negosyo sa MSME," sabi niya.

Dahi sa kalakaran ng "new normal at mga lockdown", sinabi ni Villanueva na minarapat ng ilang masigasig na Pilpino na gumamit ng mga digital services at magnegosyo sa online selling.

Dagdag pa niya na pinabilis ng pandemya ang digital transformation ng Pilipinas, dahil hindi na nakatali sa mga pabrika at opisina ang mga hanapbuhay, at pwede nang magtrabaho kahit saan basta may internet connection at smartphone o laptop computer.

"Kailangan nating arugain ang ating future entrepreneurs at "digipreneurs" (digital entrepreneurs) para sa tinatatawag nating "Fourth Industrial Revolution". Tinutulungan ng Academy ang mga business-minded nating mga kababayan na makinabang sa new normal," sabi ng senador.

Ayon kay Villanueva, tamang edukasyon, training, at suporta ang kailangan ng mga nangagarap maging entrepreneurs sa panahon ng kagipitan. "Sa tulong ng Academy, matutulungan natin ang ating mga kababayan na magtayo ng sustainable business, at magbigay ng trabaho sa kapwa Pilipino," sabi niya.

Aprubado ni TESDAMAN

Binanggit ng dating Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Director General ang "success stories" ng TESDA Specialista Technopreneurship Program sa kanyang dating ahensiya na pruweba na kailangan nga ng bansa ang entrepreneurship academy.

"Mayroon po tayong Academy for sports, police, military, merchant marines, at iba pa. Napapanahon na ang pagtatatag ng Academy para naman sa mga Pinoy entrepreneurs," sabi niya.

Itinatatag ng panukalang batas ang mga campus na magtuturo ng degree programs, technical-vocational courses, at entrepreneurship development training sa larangan ng agrikultura, pangangalakal, teknolohiya, at manufacturing.

Magiging bahagi ang mga programa at kursong binuo ng TESDA, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Science and Technology, at iba pang ahensya ng gobyerno ang mga ituturo sa panukalang Academy, na inaasahang itayo sa Baguio City at Clark, Pampanga.