SEARCA, BSP to hold roundtable discussions on sustainable agri-food systems

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), in partnership with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), will hold the “Roundtable Discussion Series on Sustainable Food and Agriculture Systems in Southeast Asia” from 18 to 19 April 2023 at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City.

The event will be streamed live via Zoom and the official Facebook pages of the SEARCA and the BSP.

“We are excited to partner with the BSP in this initiative to promote sustainable agriculture practices in Southeast Asia. Through this roundtable series, we hope to foster greater collaboration among key stakeholders to address the challenges faced by the region’s food and agriculture systems, as well as promote sustainable development in Southeast Asia,” according to SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn Gregorio.

BSP Governor Felipe M. Medalla said he looks forward to this partnership with SEARCA as it is aligned with the institution’s Sustainable Central Banking Strategy.

“The central bank will continue to enhance its collaboration with knowledge platforms and research institutions, such as SEARCA, to unlock opportunities for sustainable finance and contribute to a better understanding of the complex issues surrounding this key topic,” Medalla added.

The two-part roundtable discussion (RTD) series aims to convene agriculture and rural development experts and practitioners to discuss emerging issues and concerns, gaps, and opportunities related to the region’s sustainable food and agriculture systems.

The event will also serve as a platform for participants to share their respective insights, experiences, innovations, and best practices.

The first part will focus on digital economies for the food and agriculture sector.

The discussion will cover the role of digital economies in ensuring broad-based economic growth, as well as strong and flexible supply and value chains that can withstand economic shocks, extreme weather events, and other uncertainties.

The session will also highlight how digital technologies can improve financial inclusion and enable smallholder farmers to invest and participate in digital economies.

The second part will center on promoting carbon farming in agriculture in Southeast Asia through regional cooperation. It will include a stock-taking of the status of carbon farming, as well as the gaps and opportunities in developing the carbon credit market and agriculture in Southeast Asia.

The discussion will also tackle available data, technologies, and approaches in both the science and practice of climate-resilient agriculture in the region.

The RTD Series is envisioned to be the first step in establishing a carbon farming center to collect and analyze data related to carbon farming in Southeast Asian countries.

This collaboration is one of the initiatives of the BSP under its 11-point Sustainable Central Banking Strategy. For SEARCA, this initiative is part of its 11th Five-Year Plan, which is focused on Accelerating Transformation Through Agricultural Innovation or ATTAIN.

For more information on the RTD series, please visit https://bit.ly/RTDSeries2023.