Punta Cana.- The National Institute of Technical and Vocational Training (INFOTEP) signed a memorandum of understanding with the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Council (TVET COUNCIL), of Barbados, with the objective of implementing integrated projects, aimed at improving the technical and vocational training system from both countries.
The signing of this agreement was carried out within the framework of the 46th Meeting of the ILO Cinterfor Technical Commission, with the director of that organization, Anne Posthuma, as a witness.
The general director of INFOTEP, Rafael Santos Badía, stated that this memorandum of understanding seeks to strengthen relations between the two countries and improve the quality of technicians and facilitators in areas such as language and cybersecurity.
“We want to strengthen relations between our countries, and we are focused on workers being able to homologate their degrees in all parts of the world where they have to go to work, hence the importance of these agreements,” said Santos Badía.
For his part, the executive director of TVET COUNCIL, Henderson Eastmond, stated that this agreement represents a very important step for the island’s workers and facilitators who need, above all, to learn Spanish primarily.
“All the countries that are close to us speak Spanish, we have to learn Spanish, and INFOTEP is an important ally for us. And INFOTEP facilitators are already learning English in our country,” said Eastmond.
Meanwhile, Anne Posthuma valued the opportunities for bilateral and multilateral relations that are built at the Meeting of the ILO/Cinterfor Technical Commission, for the benefit of vocational technical training institutions.
The memorandum of understanding establishes the implementation of joint activities, including virtual and in-person exchanges of best practices with the aim of developing professional education systems and applied skills.
Both countries will develop and implement support systems for employment and labor mobility, improve productivity, as well as create and develop digital solutions and platforms for professional technical training programs.
As part of the agreement, the entities agreed to organize internships for training experts, instructors, professors and teachers under technical training programs.
In addition, they will share experiences in the organization and hosting of national, regional and international WorldSkills competitions (the world’s vocational technical training skills competition).
The memorandum, which will be valid for five years, seeks to increase the prestige, as well as the economic and social importance of technical-professional training and the promotion of bilateral partnership.