The Cagayan de Oro City Government has inked a partnership with Monark Foundation Institute (MFI), the country's only dedicated heavy equipment technical institute, to train out-of-school youths at the Cagayan de Oro Technical Vocational Institute (CDO-TVI).

City Mayor Oscar Moreno called the agreement a significant milestone in addressing need for the younger people to be equipped in special skills and give them employment opportunities.

Under the agreement, the Monark Foundation will train the students for free while the foundation can also use the CDO-TVI's facilities free of charge.

“This partnership is to allow our beneficiaries to learn heavy equipment matters using the curriculum of Monark. We hope this partnership will produce desired results,” Moreno said.

Given the trend of expenditures on infrastructure projects in the country, Moreno said the demand for workforce will grow.

“We need our young people to be ready,” he added.

Monark Foundation president Jose Antonio Bason, said they are trying to be more relevant and be connected to the community with the partnership.

Bason said their foundation's goal is to give jobs.

“Our goal really is not to produce competent graduates I have to admit but our goal is to give jobs. We are proud that our graduates for the last 20 years, are all employed,” he said.

“We will strive to make them job-ready not just skills qualified

The city has just opened the CDO-TVI located at the former Agusan National High School.

CDO-TVI is a center-based and community-based skills and livelihood for students from low-income families, out-of-school youths and the marginalized sector.

It is adopting the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority's Unified Programs Registration and Accreditation Systems as well as the Department of Education and Commission on Higher Education's senior high school curriculum for its ladderized courses.