Vivant launches solar-focused curriculum to produce job-ready electricians

CEBU-BASED Vivant Foundation Inc. has developed a solar component for the Electricians’ Installation and Maintenance (EIM) course, officially approved by the Department of Education (DepEd). This new curriculum will equip senior high students with practical skills in solar technology, a vital addition to the traditional EIM course, preparing them to work with renewable energy systems.

In an interview, Shem Jose Garcia, executive director at Vivant Foundation Inc., said the curriculum’s creation stems from Vivant Foundation’s commitment to long-term, sustainable solutions for off-grid communities. Since 2018, Vivant has successfully electrified 21 schools nationwide, beginning with Bantayan’s Hilutungan Integrated School.



However, the foundation noticed a significant challenge: many off-grid schools with solar installations faced maintenance issues, as the local workforce lacked the technical skills for system upkeep. To address this, Garcia said the Vivant Foundation integrated solar training into schools offering the EIM course, ensuring students gain essential skills in solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. “This curriculum fills a critical gap.

EIM courses covered modern technology like security systems but lacked a component for solar PV systems,” Garcia said. “Our aim is for graduates to support solar technology in their communities, especially remote areas with limited access to skilled technicians.” The launching of the new curriculum coincided with the foundation’s 10th anniversary celebration.

The curriculum’s rollout will be adopted initially by the firm’s 10 partner schools in Cebu. Pending the successful one-year pilot, DepEd will consider expanding it nationwide, Garcia said. Vivant Foundation also hopes other companies and organizations will adopt this curriculum in their own community initiatives, addressing a gap in the K-12 education system by ensuring electricians graduate with updated, job-ready skills.

“We can’t do it everywhere. So, we want to encourage other foundations, other companies that do their corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the tech-voc space to use this curriculum in their own senior high schools so that the skills of electricians are updated,” he said. Garcia said they hope graduates of the new curriculum will either be hired by contractors specializing in solar installations or use this training as a foundation if they choose to pursue engineering or electrical courses in college.

Vivant Foundation collaborated with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and DepEd to develop the curriculum, while providing necessary training for teachers and donating specialized equipment, with each school receiving around P800,000 worth of tools and resources. In select cases, Vivant has also converted classrooms into workshops to facilitate hands-on training. Vivant Foundation is the CSR arm of publicly listed Vivant Corp.

that is engaged in power and water businesses. / KOC.