3 PH universities partner with SEARCA on agricultural innovation

Three state universities have recently partnered with the Philippine government-hosted, Los Baños-based Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA).

Tarlac Agricultural University (TAU) and Laguna State Polytechnic University (LSPU) have formalized ties with SEARCA work together on areas of mutual interest such as education, research, and training, while Batangas State University (BatStateU) also agreed to cooperate with SEARCA in the same areas with special focus on innovative agricultural technologies, agribusiness incubation, and technology transfer.

Signatories to the five-year memoranda of understanding (MOU) signed by SEARCA with the three universities were SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio and Dr. Max P. Guillermo, TAU President; Dr. Mario R. Briones, LSPU President; and Dr. Tirso A. Ronquillo, BatStateU President, respectively.

Dr. Gregorio said SEARCA’s collaboration with agricultural universities is part of its strategy to harness academe-industry-government interconnectivity to revitalize the agriculture sector in the country.

He added that through SEARCA’s 11^th Five-Year Plan (2020-2025) focused on Accelerating Transformation Through Agricultural Innovation (ATTAIN), the Center serves as gateway to the future of agricultural development by building an open innovation and open science spaces that will serve as the venue for emerging trends and opportunities for agriculture and rural development in the Philippines and the Southeast Asian region.

TAU has a Sustainable Mechanized Agriculture for Research and Technology (SMART) Agriculture Center that implements climate-resilient crops production and educates learners and farmers on innovations in agriculture, food security, and sustainability.

“The Center aims to carry out its mission of fostering the implementation of smart agriculture in many ways. It will be a platform for forging interdisciplinary research collaborations across disciplines, both within and outside TAU,” said TAU President Guillermo.

On the other hand, LSPU’s Technology Business Incubation (TBI) for Agri-Fishery and Natural Products serves as a center for nurturing business start-ups in agricultural, aquatic and natural resources-based techno-enterprise. Within days of the MOU signing between SEARCA and LSPU , 107 LSPU officials, faculty, and researchers convened for a presentation on “Agriculture 4.0 Innovations for Higher Education Institutions” by Dr. Rico C. Ancog, SEARCA program lead for Emerging Innovation for Growth (EIG) and Associate Professor at the University of the Philippines Los Baños-School of Environmental Science and Management (SESAM).

Meanwhile, Dr. Ronquillo said BatStateU has a Center for Technopreneurship and Innovation and the first Knowledge Innovation and Science Technology (KIST) Park registered by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA). KIST Park is a prime destination fostering collaboration between universities, industry players, locator companies, and tech startups, including agricultural entrepreneurs.

As such, Dr. Ancog said “BatStateU, with its motto ‘Leading Innovations, Transforming Lives,’ is the ideal partner that SEARCA is looking for in our Academe-Industry-Government Model. We look forward to operationalize the SEARCA innovEIGhts Model fueled by our partnership.”

“SEARCA’s InnovEIGhts model will support, facilitate, and implement co-created and co-piloted agribusiness incubation, information and technology transfer projects, and impact- and action-driven extension and technical assistance engagement for Southeast Asia,” Dr. Ancog said.

He explained that the innovEIGhts components consist of INDEX for gap analysis and best practices benchmark, SERVES to provide farmer advisory support for innovation, iDEATES to come up with practical and technical solutions, BLOCKS for rapid prototyping of inclusive technology, A4LIFE to build an agribusiness incubation network, and SPACE to be the platform for open innovative collaboration.

Dr. Gregorio affirmed that in the coming years, SEARCA intends to facilitate the partnering up of players and actors of the innovation community in the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries such as incubator houses, venture capital funders, universities and other research institutions as well as startups, small and medium enterprises, and corporations.