Background and Rationale
The global agricultural landscape is undergoing traumatic changes and challenges, driven by a multitude of factors both anthropogenic and natural – climate change, food security, the financialization of commodities, and biofuels, to name a few. In the face of these challenges, leaders in the agricultural development community in ASEAN need to level up their skills and knowledge, and familiarize themselves with the nuances associated with managing a changing, uncertain landscape. Against this backdrop is also the increasingly multi-disciplinary nature of the issues facing leaders, as well as their connectedness, all of which require the capacity of leaders to make more holistic views and make multi-lateral decisions on complex matters.
In the long run, global competitiveness is inextricably linked to sustainability and global effectiveness. In the ASEAN region, agriculture and rural development play strategic roles in economic development. Agriculture is an area where ASEAN has comparative advantage in the global economy. To maximize its potential for growth, sustainable agricultural development requires bold and deliberate actions in trade and investment that gain the best advantage in the international market. In this light, the ASEAN region requires a unique breed of professionals who can competently lead and cooperate in programs in sustainable agricultural development against the backdrop of a highly competitive and complex global market. Considering the serious and determined efforts of ASEAN to form an ASEAN community, this executive program will be grounded not only on the principles of sustainable agricultural development, global cooperation and competitiveness, and global effectiveness; but more so on deep knowledge and understanding of ASEAN and its primordial concerns and dynamic processes.
Goals and Objectives
The forum aims to build a community of ASEAN leaders in agriculture who are empowered with knowledge on key contemporary issues in agriculture and food security, with a focus on new knowledge, high impact technologies and innovative approaches, so that the challenges arising from a dynamic agri-food landscape may be met.
Overall, the program aims to level up all agriculture leaders in ASEAN countries with the skills and knowledge to be pro-active leaders by providing updates on selected contemporary issues in agriculture and food deemed important to ASEAN. Specifically, the program aims to:
- Provide current knowledge on important topics which influence the global agricultural landscape with respect to sustainable development, trade, and livelihoods;
- Provide a comprehensive and deep understanding of factors driving the agricultural landscape in the ASEAN region, contextualized within the global milieu of factors; and
- Introduce to participants a change management paradigm of leadership beyond best practice based on complexity theory.
Forum Contents
The two-day executive forum will include interaction with experts and peers on:
- Leadership in new, evolving agricultural landscapes;
- Emergent issues in agriculture and food security in ASEAN;
- ASEAN initiatives in agriculture and food security; and
- Climate change mitigation and adaptation to ensure that agriculture is sustained
The program will make use three “learning vehicles:” knowledge triggers, knowledge generators, and knowledge applications.
Intended Participants
- Senior leaders in national agriculture, fisheries, and rural development agencies, such as Heads of Department, with responsibility to advise the Minister or equivalent authority on matters related to agriculture, food security, and sustainable development
- Officials in related government agencies, with responsibility for aspects of food security
- Leaders from private sector entities, statutory bodies, and civil society organizations
- Staff from international and regional bodies located in ASEAN (to be considered on merit basis)
Forum Duration and Venue
9-10 May 2013 (two days) | SEARCA, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines
Forum Fee
- The forum fee is US$446 per participant, which covers forum materials, meals during the duration of the forum, accommodation (twin-sharing), and airport transfers. Live-out rate is US$350.00. Subsidized rates are available upon request.
- All other expenses associated with the forum (international air travel, visa, airport terminal fees, local insurance, and other personal expenses) are at the participants’ own expense.
NOTE: Limited training support is open only to qualified nationals of SEAMEO member countries (i.e., Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Vietnam).
Applications
The deadline for filing of application with limited training support is 27 March 2013. Once awarded, grantees will have until 10 April 2013 to officially register for the forum. Deadline for filing of application for fee-paying participants is 5 April 2013. Course fees must be received by SEARCA before the forum commences. Deadline for registration of fee-paying participants is 30 April 2013.
For the application form for fee-paying participants, please [rokdownload menuitem="119" downloaditem="699" direct_download="true"]click here[/rokdownload].
For training grant applicants, please click on the [rokdownload menuitem="119" downloaditem="700" direct_download="true"]application form[/rokdownload] and [rokdownload menuitem="119" downloaditem="701" direct_download="true"]nomination form[/rokdownload].
Additional Information
- [rokdownload menuitem="119" downloaditem="669" direct_download="true"]Program Brochure [/rokdownload]
- Registration Particulars
- Travel Information