Marcos OKs funding for upskilling BPO workers

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos has approved funding for the upskilling of up to 340,000 workers in the business process outsourcing (BPO) industry annually, the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) announced over the weekend.

The upskilling initiative, which will include near-hire individuals and college students, is seen as essential in ensuring the country’s global competitiveness as artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes the workforce, according to PSAC.

A recent report by the International Monetary Fund showed up to 14 percent of the country’s workforce is at risk of being replaced by AI.

Marcos endorsed the upskilling budgets for BPO workers during a recent meeting with the PSAC’s Digital Infrastructure Sector at Malacañang.

During the meeting, PSAC also urged the government to expedite several key pillars of digital transformation, including the National ID system, digital payments, data governance and cybersecurity to ensure efficient and accessible public services.

Education support

President Marcos has declared May 16 of every year as “National Education Support Personnel Day” to recognize their vital contribution to quality education.

Republic Act 12178 or the “National Education Support Personnel Day Act” was signed into law on April 15 and published in the Official Gazette on April 25.

The law mandates the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education to lead its observance.

Education support personnel refers to persons employed in teaching-related or non-teaching positions in both public and private institutions. They include teaching assistants, registrars, librarians, doctors, nurses, schools division counselors, school counselors, school counselor associates, guidance counselors, psychologists and clerks among others.

There are over 107,000 non-teaching staff in the DepEd, while there are over 63,000 education support personnel across state universities and colleges.

Digital nomads

President Marcos has issued an order allowing foreign nationals to temporarily reside and work remotely in the Philippines.

Executive Order 86, signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on Thursday and made public on Friday, authorizes the issuance of digital nomad visas (DNVs).

Under the order, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is authorized to issue DNVs to non-immigrant foreigners who desire to enter and/or stay in the country for a temporary period for the purpose of working remotely using digital technologies and whose clients or employers are situated outside the Philippines.

The DFA shall create a database of all DNV holders for monitoring purposes.

Foreign nationals who are issued valid DNVs may enter and/or stay in the country for a maximum period of one year.