WIRED for Success
The rented vehicle leaves Tacloban City in the early hours before daylight, heading out to the meeting spot near Barangay Catoogan, to pick up participants in SSA’s WIRED for Success training program. Through a beautiful, collaborative 5-way partnership between Side by Side Alliance, the Eastern Visayas State University’s College of Technology, the LGU of Sta. Fe, the BLGU of Brgy. Catoogan, and the individual participants, the WIRED training will instruct men in skills related to electrical installation and maintenance.
Before the vehicle arrives at the barangay, the sun is high in the sky, and the heat is already rising off the black pavement of the main road. It will be another blazing hot day in the Philippines!
The men from Barangay Catoogan are gathered at the appointed pick-up spot, and one by one, they climb into the back of the multicab and slide down the long benches on each side of the vehicle. They greet the SSA team, and some talk quietly, while others close their eyes to grab a few more minutes of sleep as they commute to the city for the WIRED training.
Every weekend, these motivated learners travel to the University to attend class and practice skills in the electronics lab at EVSU. The men are getting to know each other better because of the WIRED training, and some are beginning to study together and to encourage each other as they prepare for the NCII exam, which they will have the opportunity to take at the end of the training.
They, and their family members, are thankful for the opportunity to participate in the WIRED training because they know, in the end, they will possess a second national certification – this time in electrical installation and maintenance, if they study hard and apply themselves during the course.
You see, most of these men have been down this road before. They have partnered with Side by Side Alliance once already – during the IMPACT Project, where they learned skills in carpentry, masonry, steelworks, and plumbing, after which they took the NCII exam in plumbing and received a national certification in plumbing! They know what that designation meant for them. It meant that local contractors were more interested in hiring them. It meant that they could earn a better wage and keep a regular, good paying job. It meant that they could support their families.
Now, they could possibly gain a second national certification, which the contractors had said would make them even more employable!
Yes, getting up before the sun and giving up weekends for several months in order to be in attendance at EVSU for these trainings is definitely worth it… Partnerships are good! Work is good!
The men from Barangay Catoogan settle in for the rest of the multicab ride. Just a few more minutes and they’ll be arriving at the University for the WIRED training! This will be a good day!