THE Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) has conducted a study to boost the Technology Business Incubation Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA).
The study, commissioned by the DA-Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR), was geared toward carving pathways to improve the existing and future technology business incubation programs of the agency by documenting and assessing the existing operations and implementation of the program.
Supporting technology business incubators (TBIs) is a core initiative of the government to build the capacity of research for development (R4D) institutions in effectively facilitating the transfer and commercialization of research-based technologies to benefit more startups and agri-entrepreneurs.
"The TBI provides the necessary mechanism to make a very pronounced transformative effect of R4D results toward the value chain. It is one concrete program for us to bridge the essential connection between research for development and that of extension support toward scaling, toward commercialization," DA-BAR Director Joell Lales said.
Members of SEARCA conducted a three-month rigorous review and field visits to various DA-BAR-supported TBIs across the country.
Among these sites are TBIs hosted by state universities and colleges such as the Capiz State University, Pampanga State Agricultural University, Visayas State University, Mariano Marcos State University, Benguet State University; DA-Regional Field Offices in Region 2 (Cagayan Valley), Region 4-A (Calabarzon) and Region 12 (Soccsksargen); as well as TBI projects of the National Fisheries Research and Development Institute.
From these visits, the project team produced a comprehensive profiling of these selected TBIs with documentation of their existing processes and actual impact among stakeholders.
Discussions were focused on outlining technical and policy recommendations based on the study results to address existing challenges and guide the improvement of the TBIs.
The project-level recommendations include making the program more inclusive and participatory, strengthening the monitoring and evaluation component of the program, focusing on demand-driven agri-fishery product development, providing customizable support for acceleration TBIs in business linkaging and capacity upgrading, and harmonizing efforts with existing initiatives of the agency.
Lales recognized the relevant contribution of SEARCA, and the project results in setting the outlook of the program.
"Even beyond this, we look forward to a sustained and strong partnership with SEARCA," Lales added.
Paul Joseph Ramirez, an assistant professor and University of the Philippines Los Baños-College of Economics and Management project leader, affirmed SEARCA's sustained commitment to the project and concluded the event with a remark on the promising product of the partnership.
"Everything is in place, and these initiatives are very timely, especially now as we go forward in modernizing agriculture," Ramirez said.