• CHERYL G. CRUZ
Students and medium, small, and micro entrepreneurs pursuing business digitalization, among others, can gain in-demand digital skills and secure a Google Career Certificate (GCC) for free and at their own pace, the Department of Trade and Industry in Negros Occidental said May 20.
All they need is the commitment to complete the course or specialization that they registered or applied for in the virtual campus, DTI Negros Occidental director Lynna Joy Cardinal said in a media forum yesterday.
Cardinal said this DTI-Google collaboration is a nationwide program that started in April 2024 and has been extended until December this year, with the provincial office allocated 500 slots.
DTI and Google have joined forces to upskill and reskill MSMEs and jobseekers through the GCCs, and qualified recipients this year can gain in-demand digital skills in data analytics, IT support, project management, UX design, digital marketing, and cybersecurity.
About 80 to 90 slots are still available, Kenneth Villarosa, DTI NegOcc senior trade-industry development specialist, said at the forum, adding that courses can be completed according to one’s schedule.
Villarosa said that under the program, the DTI will nominate qualified recipients and distribute GCCs through Coursera, an open online course provider. The nomination will prioritize MSMEs and their staff, women, out-of-school youth, persons with disability, senior citizens, and unemployed or underemployed individuals.
Students can also sign up for this program, free via the DTI, to establish their portfolio, especially in the field of IT, he added.
Around 30 GCCs for varied specializations have been issued in Bacolod and Negros Occidental since last year, while 200 to 300 recipients already completed short-term courses.
Villarosa said the program is on a first-come, first-served basis, but DTI is filtering those without movement, or have not visited the virtual campus for quite some time, to give chance to other qualified applicants.
For interested learners, register at bit.ly/2024GCC-InterestForm, email ecommerce@dti.gov.ph, or visit the nearest DTI Negosyo Center to learn more about this program. | CGC
