IT training center for OFWs opens

Overseas Filipino workers and their dependents will now have access to Information Technology and will be afforded free computer skills after the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and Department of Labor and Employment-7 opened its multi million peso training facility specifically for OFWs. Labor and Employment Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Marianito Roque yesterday jointly led the Department of Labor and Employment and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration officials in inaugurating a new IT training facility at the OWWA-7. Joining Sto. Tomas and Roque were DoLE Undersecretary Danilo Cruz, Office of the Communications Director Susan V. Ople, and Oliver Roll, Microsoft Asia Pacific General Manager for Corporate Marketing. The facility, called Community Learning Center, is a joint initiative of the DoLE and Microsoft to provide OFWs access to technology and computer training to enable them to communicate via the internet. "This is the time when our OFWs can now communicate with their loved ones even while abroad through the internet. This effort will strengthen OFW competitiveness and family linkages and ensure the OFWs successful reintegration into the local economic mainstream ," Sto. Tomas said. The Center is one of the projects under Microsoft's Unlimited Potential or UP program, a global initiative focused on increasing worldwide computer literacy by providing technology skills for underserved individuals. In the country, the program is dubbed "Tulay" and is being implemented by Microsoft Philippines. The company partnered with the DoLE in 2004 to establish three such centers, one each at the Philippine Overseas Labor Offices in Singapore and Malaysia and another at the OWWA. It provided a one-year grant of P4 million in cash and P3 million worth of software to the DoLE for the three centers. The grant assistance covered the cost of computers, training modules, and salaries ot trainors. The DoLE provided the venues for the Centers. It is also tasked to identify the beneficiaries and to provide administrative support. The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority provided the initial training for trainors in the Center at the OWWA. It is estimated that over 3,500 OFWs will benefit from the project. The Center at the OWWA has 20 computers which OFWs and dependents will use to train on basic computer applications such as Word, Excel, e-mail/web functions, and other short courses. Short courses will run a maximum of three days while computer familiarization and Internet usage will be taught for a minimum of four hours. "We appreciate Microsoft's effort of expanding its program of reducing the global technology divide by including our OFWs. This community technology center provided by Microsoft will help immensely our OFWs," Secretary Sto. Tomas remarked during the inauguration.