DOLE, UNEP links for YES Program

IRIGA City, Jan 12 (PIA) — The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in Bicol has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) today with the University of Northeastern Philippines (UNEP) for the full implementation of its Youth Enterprising Support or YES Program to reduce unemployment problem among the youth.

The measure also communes with the DOLE’s Working Youth Center program which endeavors to create more livelihood opportunities for the youth in consonance with its commitment to the Philippine Youth Development and Employment Agenda.

DOLE Bicol regional director Nathaniel Lacambra personally handed the Certificate of Accreditation to Atty. Remelisa Alfelor-Moraleda, UNEP president, in recognition of its capacity as co-partner to the different livelihood components of the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Programs (DILP).

Lacambra said that he will aptly call the covenant as a” partnership of trust” since the DOLE will be entrusting a government fund to a private entity.

“We share the benefit of the government to able and willing partners who have showed their interest to partake of the government’s services. This is also the essence of the Public-Private Partnership that our present government is pursuing. This is a challenge for our students to pursue, persevere and insist in succeeding so that the government’s effort will not be wasted,” Lacambra said.

Moraleda welcomed the partnership with the excitement of giving another opportunity to UNEP students to explore other financial endeavors through the said partnership.

“UNEP has been exploring partnership with various government entities in the past. We have the office of the National Statistics Office (NSO) here inside the campus, partnership with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) , and DOLE has been a long time partner in some of the orientations that we are conducting inside the university. YES program, in addition is a welcome development since this will empower our students to boost their entrepreneurial skills and be their own managers in the future,” Moraleda said in an interview.

DOLE has approved the student’s business plans on Banana Chips enterprise, Choco Cup Phoria, Street Food vending, Emerald Cupcake Collection and HealhTea. These projects are worth P500,000.00. An equity of P100,000.00 will be coming from UNEP as its counterpart. (MAL/LSM-PIA5/Camarines Sur)