Almost a decade after the first promulgation of the Training Regulations on Rubber Production (TRRP) National Certificate (NC) II, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) presented to the private sector-partners and concern government offices the approval of the Amended TRRP NC II on March 11, 2021.

In the first quarterly meeting of the National Banner Program Committee (NBPC) on High-value Crops- Rubber, members of the committee applauded the efforts of TESDA in amending the training regulations which serves as a training standard for developing skills in establishing rubber budwood and seedlings nursery, planting rubber trees/ rubber seedlings, performing budding operations, and harvest latex.

“We, at the NBPC on Rubber, would like to applaud the efforts of TESDA in revalidating and amending the protocol of the rubber production stated in the NC II,” said NBPC on HVC-Rubber Chairperson Jack Sandique.

According to Senior TESD Specialist Bernadette Audije, the proposed revisions for the Rubber Production NC II are already approved and published. She also added that before finalizing the training regulations, TESDA conducted validations and public consultations.

The amended version includes the qualification description for the Rubber Production NC II; the basic, common, and core competencies; training arrangement; trainee entry requirements; training facilities; trainer’s qualification, and national assessment and certification arrangement.

In the meeting, the group also discussed the update on the conduct of the study on rubbers and waste plastics as reinforcement additives to asphalt binder-based pavement infrastructure, which was presented by the University of the Philippines-Los Baños.

They were also updated on the Philippine Rubber (PhilRubber) Industry Roadmap for 2021-2040. Upon validation, the PhilRubber Technical Working Group mentioned that there were some changes in the components of the roadmap. | JC