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Archives
May 1-15, 2001
PhilFruits establishment plan reviewed
by Rita T. dela Cruz
The External Review Team (ERT) met recently
with the Philippine Tropical Fruits Research Center
(PhilFruits) Advisory Board to review the establishment
plan of the Center. They also evaluated the concept
paper prepared by the Project Formulation Team prior
to its presentation to the Department of Agriculture
Secretary for approval, first week of June 2001.
Present during the meeting were Bureau
of Agricultural Research (BAR) Director Eliseo Ponce,
Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) Director Blo Umpar Adiong,
Fruits RDE Network Team Leader Hernani Golez, National
Plant Genetics Resources for Food & Agriculture
Program Network Team Leader Ceferino Baniqued, UPLB
Professor Tito Contado, and Senior Scientist Advisory
Committee (SSAC) Chairman Fernando Bernardo. Presenting
the concept paper was Dr. Ernesto Lozada, team leader
of the Project Formulation Team. Assisting him were
Dr. Samuel Mancebo, assistant team leader and Dr. Rey
Velasco, team member.
The discussions revolved around the proposed
revisions on the PhilFruits establishment plan that
would create strong support to its existence. Among
these are the following: how the Center could provide
a better edge in fruits R&D; improvement and modification
of the underlying principle of the Center; inclusion
of pertinent data and statistics on fruit crop research
that can strengthen and better justify the existence
of the Center; and revision on the current existing
law delineating roles and responsibilities of people
and institutions involved.
PhilFruits was established by Administrative
Order No. 4 Series of 2001 on 11 January. This was authorized
by former DA Secretary Domingo Panganiban as a Center
under the premises set forth by the Agriculture and
Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA) and Executive Order
162. The Administrative Order specifically states the
establishment of the Center as a semi-autonomous unit
of BPI; putting up of the Center at the BPI-Davao National
Research and Development Center (NCRDC) in Bago Oshiro;
and the transfer of its facilities, experimental areas,
and personnel to the Center. Along with the establishment
of the Center, an Advisory Board will be created to
provide guidance.
According to Dr. Bernardo, the existence
of the Center may be justified by its distinct responsibilities
from that of other R&D institutions. He further
argued that, there are other government institutions/agencies
and private companies that deal with fruits i.e., PCARRD,
DA-BAR, Dole, Del Monte, hence the Formulation Team
must emphasize on the importance of "leadership"
in making PhilFruits stand out among the existing institutions.
"One compelling reason is a strong, sustainable,
and long-term leadership which is unlikely of the private
industry that mainly favors its own interest… public
goods should be handled by the public sector itself
like the DA," he said.
Dir. Adiong suggested a review of existing
laws to clearly delineate the roles and responsibilities
of PhilFruits apart from other institutions that are
working along the same crop. Likewise, he reiterated
the issue of the autonomy of PhilFruits as a center.
According to him, it must be clear whether the Center
will be a part of BPI, or shall exist as another unit
with a high degree of autonomy.
Meanwhile, Dr. Ponce emphasized the importance
of a clear and well-stated vision and mission of the
Institute. Likewise, Dr. Bernardo suggested that the
leading functions of the Center be "strong",
showing an established leadership in strategic research.
Coordination comes later according to him. It is not
appropriate that the institution provide the data, instead
it should undertake policy and advocacy studies. The
Center's function will improve if it highlights manpower
development to strengthen research capability, not only
in training, but also in providing support and sustaining
human resource on fruit crop research and development.
May 1-15 2001 Articles: ::
Farmers, private sector renew ties with BAR
::
PhilCorn institutional plan developed
::
BAR technical expert proposes scheme for public-private sector partnership
::
CGIAR redefines role for 21st century
::
A second look at biotechnology
::
3 national team leaders take posts
::
PhilFruits establishment plan reviewed
::: More May 2001 articles :::
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