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Something needs to be done about our country’s agriculture research and development (ARD) system.
If that was not the case, the Philippines should be an export powerhouse today when it comes to agri-food products.

It even disheartens me that the country is a net food importer, shipping abroad $5.7 billion worth of agri-food products in 2016 and importing $11 billion for a $5.9-billion trade deficit. The official import figures does not include food and farm products smuggled into the country, which I believe is still rampant and significant in value.

Data from the United Nations Trademap also shows the country’s Southeast Asian neighbors are way ahead when it comes to agri-food exports. For example, Thailand shipped abroad $42.2 billion in agri-food products in 2016 and imported $15.7 billion for a surplus of $26.5 billion; Indonesia $36.5 billion in agri-food exports and $17.9 billion in agricultural imports for a surplus of $18.6 billion; Malaysia $26.7 billion in agri-food exports and $17.4 billion in agricultural imports for a surplus of $9.3 billion; and Vietnam $23.1 billion in agri-food exports and $14.5 billion in agricultural imports for a surplus of $8.6 billion.

The Philippines being a laggard when it comes to agri-food exports can also be blamed on the lack of a unified ARD agenda to support an ecosystem for agribusiness and agripreneurship.

I am not alone in this view. Dr. Rolando Dy, the director of the Center for Food and AgriBusiness of the University of Asia and the Pacific, on April 12 he said he has seen how ARD “became a major force for productivity and diversification” for the Southeast Asian countries I just mentioned.

“They have dedicated research institutes, with adequate funding and support, to undertake extensive R&D work,” he added.

Well, we do have a good number of ARD institutes like the Philippine Rice Research Institute, Philippine Carabao Center, Philippine Coconut Authority, Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization, Bureau of Animal Industry, and Bureau of Plant Industry under the Department of Agriculture (DA). On top of these ARD institutes, we have funding agencies like Bureau of Agricultural Research under the DA, Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD) under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), and Commission on Higher Education (CHED) among others. But I have yet to see these ARD and funding institutions guided by a unified ARD agenda aimed at establishing and supporting an ecosystem for agribusiness and agripreneurship.

So what should be the components of a unified ARD agenda? What should be the way forward, initially?

The way forward

Firstly, ARD should be demand-driven and in the case of the Philippines should address the need to increase crop production, address value-adding, help create more agri-based micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and support the needs of industries involved in agribusiness, including improvement of current processes/technologies to produce various farm and food products. We should also study the various mitigation and adaptation measures as a result of changing climate.

Secondly, there should be stronger linkages and collaboration among various R&D institutions, including state colleges and universities (SCUs), particularly those offering farming, fisheries, and forestry, and related courses.

The CHED must also play a bigger role by pushing for more ARD funding including reorientation of their curricular programs towards entrepreneurship.

Thirdly, there is a need to put into place a unified but decentralized system to transfer and commercialize R&D outputs, especially to smallholders in the agriculture sector. And I have already written a series of columns on why local government units should also be at the forefront of transferring and upscaling R&D outputs to smallholders in the agriculture sector.

And with a unified ARD, more funding should be allocated for research for development.

I have stated in my past columns that the Philippines is not investing enough in R&D, which according to the UNESCO should be at least 1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

In 2013, the country’s GERD (Gross Expenditure for R&D) was only 0.14 percent of GDP.

I may sound critical about the current state of ARD in the Philippines, but as I have stated earlier and sharing Dr. Dy’s views, our Southeast Asian neighbors like Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia have strong ARD that result in more agri-food exports. What other proof do we need?

Dr. Dy cited as an excellent example the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand that operates five research centers to address the needs of different agro-ecological zones. The institute has developed two productive rubber clones, and helped make Thailand the world’s leading natural rubber exporter.

“Public agricultural research has played a big role. Agricultural research outputs have increased, in particular, improved rice, rubber, maize, soybean and cassava varieties, according to a study done by Leturqe and Wiggins under the Overseas Development Institute in 2010,” Dr. Dy said.

“Thailand is a leading global player in sugar, cassava, pineapple, processed fruits, shrimp, and chicken meat,” he added.

In the case of the Philippines, coconut products, particularly in oil form, is among the Top 2 agriculture exports.

But why is it that smallholder coconut farmers are still part of the country’s “poorest of the poor” and the average yield of coconuts trees is a very low 46 nuts per year. In India the average yield per tree is 250 per year, Mexico 300 nuts, and Brazil 400 nuts.

Definitely, something needs to be done about the country’s ARD.

The third r&d conference

I am writing this column as a prelude to the 3rd National R&D Conference (NRDC) that is being held today (April 20) at the PICC in Pasay City.

The invitation letter from the DOST stated that the first two NRDCs in 2016 and 2017 had the attendees working on “developing the country’s harmonized research and agenda and priorities for 2017-2022.” The National Economic and Development Authority also approved the Harmonized National R&D Agenda in August last year.

The annual NRDC is an excellent way to generate a consensus for a unified ARD agenda.

Increasing the budget for ARD is always good news, but fragmented research, development, and extension efforts among institutions including SCUs that do not address the needs of smallholders in the agriculture sector, industry, and agribusiness would be next to useless.

For the second part of the column-series, I will discuss the outputs of the 3rd NRDC, and more on the need to have a unified ARD.

See you at the 3rd NRDC!

To leverage the new technologies coming out of the Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has officially launched its Science for Change Program, or S4CP.

DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Peña spearheaded the launch of the S4CP’s during the 3rd National Research and Development Conference (NRDC).

He said the NRDC, organized yearly by the DOST, gathers various players of the Philippines’ innovation system — policy- and decision-makers, researchers, funders, users, and beneficiaries of the department’s R&D efforts. Hundreds of them participated in Friday’s NRDC at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City.

He told this journalist in an interview that DOST is mandated to hold an NRDC as stipulated in Republic Act No. 10055, or the “Philippine Technology Transfer Act of 2009.”

“We are actually following the provision of the Technology Transfer Act that once a year there should be a national R&D conference so that we can disseminate and inform (the people) about what is happening, what is being achieved, and we can (also) gather feedback,” said de la Peña.

He added the DOST’s strategy dubbed Science for the People (SFTP) is also a component of the S4CP.

The DOST chief cited the reason for this: “Basically, we would like to say that the benefits of what we are doing in the science and technology (S&T) sector redound to the benefit of the Filipino citizens whether you are in the sector like farming, or whether you are a student, or whether you are a professional, or whether you are an entrepreneur, there is something that science can do for you.”

In his speech, de la Peña noted that IR4.0 or Industry 4.0 is characterized by frontier technological breakthroughs integrating the physical, biological and digital worlds that give life to dramatic and transformative shifts in the economy, in the way people do business, or how they perform practically every single human task.

“Technologies such as big data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT), blockchain, 3D printing, and virtual reality can potentially transform products, services, and associated support networks,” he said.

From these technologies, he pointed out, emerge new business models as well as new institutions which are seen to pave the way for a new era in the economy, social and political lives.

“It is predicted that these technologies will have a profound impact, possibly aggravating the disparities within and between nations,” said de la Peña.

The DOST chief cited the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) forecast on the impact of the emerging technological trends resulting “in a net loss of over five million jobs by 2020.”

On the other hand, he said, that while millions of jobs could be lost, “there is an equal opportunity for millions of new jobs being created as well” as the same technologies bring with them the enormous potential to raise productivity and create positive impacts to society and environment. He added IR4.0 technologies can be used to feed the country’s rising population through technological innovations in agriculture and food systems.

“It is against his backdrop that the DOST formulates its programs and projects towards Industry 4.0 taking into considerations the country’s technological landscape and capabilities,” said de la Peña.

The S4CP has four components, such as the Niche Center in the Regions (NICER) Program for Research and Development (R&D); R&D Leadership (RDLead) Program; Collaborative R&D to Leverage (CRADLE) Philippine Economy Program; and Business Innovation through S&T (BIST) for Industry Program.

NICER seeks to capacitate higher education institutions (HEIs) in the regions; RDLead engages experts who are equipped with strong leadership, management, and innovative policy-making proficiency; CRADLE aims to help create a synergistic relationship between the academe as producer of knowledge and manpower, and the industry as an organization which implements technologies; and, BIST was crafted to facilitate the acquisition of foreign technologies by Filipino companies for immediate incorporation in their R&D activities.

De la Peña said the S4CP “endeavors to significantly accelerate science, technology, and innovation (STI) in the country by massive and aggressive investments in R&D with complementary human resource development initiatives.”

He added that S4CP is linked with the Duterte administration’s development goals through the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2017-2022 and the DOST’s own Science for the People strategy.

Presently, DOST is accepting project proposals it will fund for the S4CP components.