The Colombo Plan Staff College and the Office of the Vocational Education Commission (OVEC) Thailand successfully organized an in-country program that centered on project management. Held from March 21-25, 2022, it involved the participation of 20 instructors from the different vocational schools in the country. It was notably held in a hybrid manner: the program resources were delivered virtually by the experts to the participants who convened onsite at the Chiangrai Vocational College (CVC) located in Northern Thailand.

The program was organized with a realization that project management is important in TVET since it enhances support mechanisms for reforming the ecosystem with a view to having a new development pattern that holds a culture of economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable development. The key aim of the program is to improve the quality and relevance, access to and equity within, and governance and management of the TVET system with interventions around curricula, labor market needs, quality assurance, standards and capacity of the trainers, and crosscutting themes on gender and inclusivity.

Supervising the program is the Director General of CPSC, Prof. G.L.D. Wickramasinghe and the Secretary-General of the Office of the Vocational Education Commission, Dr. Suthep Kaengsanthia.

Dr. Ligaya Valmonte-Dumaoang, a TVET and Skills Specialist at ILO Bangladesh is the program coordinator. Program resources were supplemented by Engr. Md. Jahangir Alam, the former Director (Planning & Dev.) of Directorate of Technical Education under Technical and Madrasah Education Division, Bangladesh and Engr. Abdul Ghani Rajput, an E-learning Developer, UNEP. and former Faculty Specialist in CPSC from 2019-2021.

Providing the local context as a resource person is Dr. Rangsan Thepmondhri, Director of Policy and Strategy Division, Bureau of Policy and Planning of OVEC-Thailand. Meanwhile, local coordination and arrangements were facilitated by Mr. Laksasak Yangsaman, the Acting Director of the International Strategy and External Relations Division of OVEC-Thailand. Dr. Paiboon Saiyawongs, the Special Officer for the Asia-Pacific Accreditation and Certification Commission (APACC) and an independent TVET consultant, was also in the program as a facilitator.

Chief guests of the opening ceremony: Prof. G.L.D Wickramasinghe, CPSC Director General (left/top) and Flt. Off. Somporn Pandam, Deputy Director General of OVEC (right/bottom)

The opening ceremony was held on March 21, 2022 and was attended by key officials from OVEC and CPSC, as well as the participants. Prof. Wickramasinghe, in his opening speech, provided an insight into the program, particularly the relevance of project management in TVET management. Meanwhile, the chief guest of the program and the Deputy Secretary General of OVEC, Flag Officer Somporn Pandam, outlined the different challenges that Thailand has to overcome in its education sector and wished the participants well in their upcoming activities.

The Chargé d'affaires of the Royal Thai Embassy in Manila, Philippines, Mr. Thawat Sumitmor, delivering his opening speech.

Another chief guest invited to the program is the Charge dÁffaires of the Royal Thai Embassy in Manila, Mr. Thawat Sumitmor. Addressing the participants both in Thai and English, his speech centered on the fruitful cooperation between Thailand and the Philippines in education and skills development, as well as the role of CPSC in strengthening this cooperation.

The topics that were tackled during the 5-day program include the following: (1) Basics of Project Management, (2) Identifying and Conceptualizing Projects; (3) Developing the Project Proposal; (4) Project Implementation and Monitoring; and (5) Project Evaluation and Closure.

To supplement the program, the following group work activities were organized to develop the project management skills of the participants: (1) Issues and Challenges in Project Management in TVET; (2) Developing the Project Concept Note: Situation Analysis, Stakeholder Analysis, and Results Chain; (3) Preparing the Project Proposal: Logical Framework Matrix, Risk Analysis, Financial Analysis; (4) Outlining the Implementation and Monitoring Plan and (5) Assessing Project Design with DAC Criteria. These were presented per group on the last day.

Resource speakers of the program: Dr. Ligaya Valmonte-Dumaoang (left/top) and Engr. Abdul Ghani Rajput (right/bottom)

Dr. Rangsan Thepmondhri, Director of Policy and Strategy Division, Bureau of Policy and Planning of OVEC Thailand, addressing the participants.

The closing ceremony invited esteemed guests including the Director of the Chiangrai Vocational College, Dr. Orapin Duangkaew. In her closing remarks, she expressed her appreciation to the organizers and participants for the successful program and wished them the best in their future endeavors. The well-wishes were echoed by Prof. Wickramasinghe and other officials that are in attendance.

Dr. Orapin Duangkaew, Director of the Chiangrai Vocational College, giving her closing speech to the participants.

Screenshot of the participants of the program

Participants during a classroom session

Participants’ Response

Ms. Preenapha Leedee (Teacher Institute of Vocational Education Bangkok)
I have obtained new ideas and knowledge about the basics of project management. Until the last day, I have learned and experienced so much and I appreciate the assignments that the speakers have given to us.
Ms. Sasithon Chandee (Educator Bureau of Private Vocational Education Administration)
I appreciate the efforts the speakers have given to the program. I hope that this program will improve our efficiency and enable us to be more effective stewards in our departments.
Mr. Noppawit Chenbooncu (Educator Bureau of Private Vocational Education Administration)
I appreciate that the speakers gave us a wonderful training course. Although it had some problems because it is conducted online, we have learned a lot and we tried our best to get many lessons about project management. We would take any experience that we have gained to be more efficient in our tasks.