Tesda to provide language training to health workers bound for Japan

By: Jeannette I. Andrade - 10 years ago

MANILA, Philippines—The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) has agreed to provide Japan-bound health workers six months of language and cultural training to add more value to their skills.

Tesda Director General Joel Villanueva said he signed on Monday a memorandum of agreement with the Japan Foundation Manila that would enable over 200 nurses and caregivers to learn the Japanese language and study that country’s culture at Tesda’s National Language Skills Institute.

Once in Japan, they will be given additional comprehensive language training.

Villanueva said in a press statement that the training, which started on Tuesday and will continue until May 20 next year, will help the health workers adapt and settle in faster when they are employed in the country.

“When in a foreign country, everything from greetings to requests to simple conversations can get lost in translation,” Villanueva said. “Equally important to their technical skills as nurses and caregivers will be the ability to speak, write and understand the Japanese language.”

Villanueva said knowledge of the Japanese language will also help them pass the Japanese licensure examinations which would enable them to work in the country as permanent nurses and caregivers.

Since 2011 nearly 600 Japan-bound nurses and caregivers have undergone the language and culture training provided by the Tesda.

Under the memorandum of agreement signed by the Tesda and the Japan Foundation Manila, the health workers will be given lessons in language and culture before they are deployed to Japan under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA). Another six months of comprehensive language training await them in Japan after they complete the basic course.

The JPEPA, which was signed in Helsinki, Finland, on September, 2006, is aimed at increasing trade and investment opportunities in the two countries.

In the agreement, Filipino nurses and caregivers are allowed to practice their profession in Japan provided they undergo six months of skills and language training in the country and pass its national licensure exams.