SEARCA in the News

A Philippine-hosted intergovernmental treaty organization, in partnership with a Pasig-based startup, launched a digital agriculture exchange platform called AgriEX, which allows fair trade via a farm-to-fork system. The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture’s (Searca) Emerging Innovation for Growth (EIG) department and startup APPGeese have been working to establish a pilot digital agriculture platform in Laguna and Quezon provinces, particularly in vegetable farming communities at the foot of Mount Banahaw. During the virtual launch of the project, Raymund Austria, APPGeese chief executive officer, explained that AgriEX would help farmers attain financial inclusion with the use… Read more

“The year 2021 must be a year where previous justifications are to be rendered as no longer acceptable. Instead, the touted ‘new normal’ clearly means concrete actions that are wiser, effective, and sustainable.” Those words came from the mouth of Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio, a famous plant breeder researcher and current director of the Philippines-hosted Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). The good news is: Dr. Gregorio has been appointed as one of the new Champions of the United Nations (UN) Food Systems Summit 2021. Dr. Gregorio is honored for being appointed as such… Read more

Small farmers may now avail of seed money from financial technology or fintech startups. Fintech startups in Asia are now offering support to smallholder farmers in accessing potential markets, said Christian Lauron, SGV Financial Services Consulting Partner and Government & Public Sector Leader. Fintech also provides access to affordable credit, capital for agricultural equipment and other financial services, Lauron said at an online forum on the potential of fintech in advancing agricultural developmentorganized by the SyCip Gorres Velayo & Co. (SGV) and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). The forum discussed fintech’s role… Read more

Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Director Glenn B. Gregorio has been named as one of the new Food Systems Champions of this year’s United Nations Food Systems Summit. The National Academy of Science and Technology, Philippines (NAST PHL) announced that Gregorio, a professor at the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), made it to the list of staunch advocates of the Food Systems of the UN Food Systems Summit 2021. “Congratulations to Academician Glenn B. Gregorio for being one of the new Food Systems Champions of the United Nations Food Systems Summit… Read more

If smallholder farmers in the Philippines want to compete with those having big farms, the best they can do is to employ the so-called agricultural clusters approach. That’s one way of enhancing their competitiveness, according to a new policy paper. “An agricultural cluster is a strategic approach to operationalize the appropriate channels at a scale necessary for (smallholder farms) to have enhanced competitive strength to connect with national and international markets,” said the paper released by the Laguna-based Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). The agriculture-based small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in developing countries… Read more

Scholarship and research grantees of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) have published a book illustrating the practical application and various research methodologies that support sustainable development. Dr. Glenn Gregorio, Searca director, said the book was authored by 30 scientists and researchers from the Philippines, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam highlighting relevant methodologies they used for their research in their countries to tackle the challenges that bear on sustainable development.   “The book presents customized methodologies the authors have tested in their independent research work. It highlights and celebrates some commendable research… Read more

As part of the efforts to boost the Philippines’ agricultural production, the Philippine government should find a way to be able to tap into financial technology (FinTech) in linking farmers with financial services.   “If done well, FinTech could be key to increasing agricultural productivity because of its huge potential for financial inclusion by making financial services and products accessible even to the marginalized farmers and farming families,” Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Director Glenn B. Gregorio said. Rico C. Ancog, University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) Associate Professor and UP Scientist… Read more

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has commissioned the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) to develop a pioneering jurisdictional-level platform for Palawan for the management and monitoring of forest and landscape climate finance investments. “As both carbon source and sink, forests play a key role in climate change mitigation. To achieve a significant emissions reduction, there is a need for investment in forest landscape and climate finance to support scalable approaches and programs, such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+),” Searca Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio… Read more

Research scholarships for master’s and doctoral degrees are being offered to Filipinos and other Southeast Asians. The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) and Sejong University in Seoul, South Korea, Joint Graduate Research Scholarship for Southeast Asian Countries is open to Filipinos and nationals of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam. SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio said the joint scholarship aims to strengthen the capacities of Southeast Asian scientists and researchers by enabling them to obtain master’s and doctoral degrees by research in the fields of… Read more

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN-FAO) is developing a pioneering jurisdictional-level platform for Palawan province for the management and monitoring of forest landscape and climate finance investments. Glenn Gregorio, Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) director, said the UN-FAO has commissioned Searca to lead the project. UN-FAO will fund the project. Gregorio said forests play a crucial role in climate change mitigation both as a sink and a source of carbon, and to achieve significant emissions reduction. He added that investment in forest landscape and climate finance is needed to support scalable… Read more