Ms. Maria Bernadette M. Ramos is an internationally recognized Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) expert with more than 15 years of experience advancing education systems across Southeast Asia and East Africa. She was honored with the Prime Minister’s Award for her significant contributions to advancing TVET education in Rwanda, an award presented through the Korean Government’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) in partnership with the Office of the Prime Minister.

Throughout her career, Maria has served as a trusted advisor, project leader, and coordinator, successfully leading complex education initiatives that strengthen workforce development and improve training quality. She is known for her ability to build strong relationships, unite diverse stakeholders, and deliver meaningful outcomes through effective project management, strategic planning, and cross-functional collaboration. Her leadership style is rooted in emotional intelligence, earning the trust of government institutions, steering committees, development partners, and project teams while driving continuous improvements in operational efficiency.

Maria has played a pivotal role in transforming TVET systems through the development and implementation of competency-based education and training frameworks. She led the creation of TVET Trainer Certificate Programs and successfully directed the training and certification of more than 4,000 TVET trainers using a cascading training approach within a single year. She also served as the lead author of Rwanda’s National Competency-Based Practical Assessment, the TVET Trainer Certification Framework, the Competency-Based Curriculum Development Framework, and the Competency-Based Training and Assessment Implementation Framework.

In addition to authoring national frameworks, Maria has led initiatives to strengthen the capacity of technical and vocational education and training institutions by developing market-relevant training programs and integrating competency-based training and assessment into national education systems. Her expertise has also contributed to the development of national TVET strategies and policies, leaving a lasting impact on workforce education and skills development across the regions she has served.