SEARCA in the News

School-Plus-Home Gardens Project (S+HGP) model piloted in six schools in Laguna will soon be replicated on Busuanga Island in Palawan to help the island secure its food needs in light of its poor soil quality. This was the consensus reached at a recent consultation convened in Coron, Palawan by the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) and the University of the Philippines Los Baños with the local government, schools and tourism industry. The S+HGP models in Laguna saw harvests from the school gardens provide fresh vegetables for the school-based feeding program and whose gardening-feeding… Read more

Late improvements in GM innovation incorporate an approach to counteract the mainstream Cavendish banana assortment from being cleared out by the Fusarium wither parasite, as per the most recent report of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) discharged a week ago (29 August) in Manila. The Cavendish — which records for about portion of all banana assortments developed on the planet and most imports into Europe and the US — can be shielded by grafting in qualities from banana assortments impervious to the savage Tropical Race 4 (TR4) strain of the Fusarium oxysporum parasite just as… Read more

MANILA -- The Department of Education (DepEd) and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) have discussed building a partnership to promote the importance of agriculture among Filipino learners. Education Secretary Leonor Briones, in a statement on Thursday, said agriculture is one of the recommended fields for students nationwide. "We are primarily an agricultural country and we want to enhance interest in agriculture,” Briones said. On Aug. 28, SEARCA Director Glenn Gregorio presented to DepEd the center's programs that may be linked with the K to 12 curriculum, particularly in agriculture, under the Technical-Vocational track… Read more

The Department of Education (DepEd) is eyeing to integrate more agricultural concepts in the K to 12 curriculum to further enhance the learners’ interest in agriculture. “Agriculture is one of the main recommended fields for our students,” said Education Secretary Leonor Briones. “We are primarily an agricultural country and we want to enhance interest in agriculture,” she added. Briones and Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Director Glenn Gregorio recently met to discuss possible partnership in promoting agriculture among learners. During the meeting, Gregorio presented SEARCA’s programs that may be linked to DepEd’s K… Read more

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna -- A photo contest which zooms in on images depicting Southeast Asian youth actively engaged in agriculture has been launched to inspire others to become "agripreneurs". The 2019 edition of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Photo Contest is open to all nationals of the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam, said Leah Lyn D. Domingo, public relations specialist of the Office of the SEARCA Director, told Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Wednesday. “This year’s competition aims to capture scenes that illustrate the… Read more

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna -- The Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) will expand the coverage of its banking services by setting up additional satellite centers and deployment of mobile tellers in remotest and depressed provinces nationwide. In an interview with the Philippine News Agency, LBP First Vice President for Strategic Planning Elcid Pangilinan said the bank has approved in principle the opening of over 250 banking outlets in an effort to strengthen and improve the financial infusion for un-banked areas. The bank has targeted to complete the project in the next five years aimed at improving the urgent need for financial… Read more

[MANILA] Recent developments in genetic modification (GM) technology include a way to prevent the popular Cavendish banana variety from being wiped out by the Fusarium wilt fungus, according to the latest report of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) released last week (29 August) in Manila. The Cavendish — which accounts for nearly half of all banana varieties grown in the world and most imports into Europe and the US — can be protected by splicing in genes from banana varieties resistant to the deadly Tropical Race 4 (TR4) strain of the Fusarium oxysporum fungus as well as a gene from… Read more

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna -- A joint agreement calling for reinvigorated efforts to effectively shield the agriculture sector from the devastation caused by natural calamities in the Southeast Asia region, was signed here Friday by key officials from the national and local government, international financial institutions, and private organizations Delegates to the two-day "Forum on Reducing Disaster Risks towards a Resilient Agricultural Sector" at the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) headquarters here have committed to safeguarding the agriculture sector because it is one of the basic components in the provision of stable food supply across… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) has set August 31, 2019 as the deadline of applications for research scholarships to doctorate students whose dissertation topics are relevant to its priority thrusts. The scholarship is open to Filipinos and other Southeast Asians from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. Headquartered at the campus of the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), SEARCA provides research funds not to exceed US$4,500 and optional internship at the center for up to two months. Those who will avail of the internship… Read more

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and the Embassy of France in the Philippines will jointly convene a forum with key stakeholders of the agricultural and rural sector to tackle the interactions between disaster and the agricultural landscape. The forum will take a close look at how various stakeholders of the sector cope with the effects of disasters in various stages, from preparation to post disaster recovery. SEARCA Director Glenn B. Gregorio said examining agriculture-disaster interactions will also bring into the picture the link between development and vulnerability of agriculture and rural areas… Read more