The Unilab Foundation, through its Project Management Team (PMT) for the Advanced Manufacturing Workforce Development (AMDev) Program, conducted the first Alliance Strengthening workshop on February 24-25, 2023, at the Twin Lakes Hotel in Tagaytay City.
AMDev aims to develop a pipeline of highly skilled and adaptive workforce that meets the evolving requirements and global demand of advanced manufacturing by establishing an Advanced Manufacturing Skills Council (AMSC) in the country and establishing Advanced Manufacturing Institutes (AMI) across the various industries through the cooperation of the Alliance Partners.
The Alliance Strengthening workshop served as an avenue for the 28 participants from the Alliance partners and the PMT to creatively co-design a streamlined implementation plan and strengthen their professional bonds as fellow advocates for a better quality of life for every Filipino through the successful delivery of the AMDev program.
“You, our valuable partners, are crucial for the success of this endeavor. When you form a team, you form, you storm, you norm, before you can perform. When you form a team sometimes there is tension because you’re setting the standards. But eventually, your norm—in other words, you’re setting up guidelines, you’re setting up behavioral contexts that will allow you together and that’s why it’s so important to have sessions like this,” says AMDev Program Chief of Party, Dr. Danilo Lachica, emphasizing the importance of strengthening the alliance among partners.
Currently, the AMDev project has 13 Alliance Partners from the private sector. Leading the adoption of advanced manufacturing among the Alliance members are the four model companies: the Amherst Laboratories, Inc and Belmont Softgel Pharma Corporation of the pharmaceutical industry, the Fastech Synergy Philippines, Inc. and the Western Digital of the electronics technology.
The AMDev Program has also partnered with higher education institutions, research institutions, and specialized non-profit organizations such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Open Learning, the Center for Integrated STEM Education, Inc. (CISTEM), and the Ateneo Center for Organizational Research and Development (CORD) to name a few, to assist in the development of the training courses and modules of the AMIs.
Key government agencies will help the AMDev Project ensure the sustainability of the Alliance through the development of public policies. Alliance partners from the Makati Business Club, Action for Economic Reforms and Bayan Academy will take the lead in facilitating collaboration with the government and steering the policy initiatives of the Alliance.
Moving forward, the AMDev program is set to conduct a series of training sessions, implement various evaluation and assessment methods, and initiate interventions that will contribute to the efforts to achieve a future-ready Philippines.
“Ipakita natin ang ating puso because the heart is really where the battle is won. This is just not work. This is a commitment to improve the educational system for the youth to uplift our economy and our country,” said COP Lachica, closing the session by reminding each partner of what it means to be an AMDev Alliance Partner.
