SEARCA in the News

Officials from the ministries of education, labor, and vocational training from the 11 Southeast Asian countries, as well as heads of specialist institutions of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), will convene in Brunei Darussalam on 9-10 September 2019 to discuss the current situation of technical and vocational education and training in Southeast Asia and to develop strategies to improve the regional cooperation and harmonization for the region. The Philippines will be represented by a delegation from the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). A Filipino also heads the Bangkok-based SEAMEO… Read more

OFFICIALS from ministries of education, labour, and vocational training in all of the 11 Southeast Asian countries, as well as heads of the specialist institutions for the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organisation (SEAMEO), will convene in Brunei Darussalam today and tomorrow. They will discuss the current situation of technical and vocational education and training in Southeast Asia, while developing strategies to improve regional cooperation and harmonisation. With the theme ‘Strengthening Efforts Towards TVET 4.0’, the 5th High Officials Meeting (HOM) on Southeast Asia Technical and Vocational Education and Training (SEA-TVET) will determine and plan regional directions and strategies to… Read more

Los Baños, Laguna—An intergovernment treaty organization hosted by the Philippine government has opened a photo contest on vibrant images that depict enterprising and innovative Southeast Asia young “agripreneurs” who are actively engaged in agriculture now and in the future. Launched by the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture, the photo contest is open to all nationals of the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. Leah Lyn Domingo, SEARCA public relations specialist, said this year’s competition aims to capture scenes that illustrate the theme “Cultivating Southeast Asia’s Youth… Read more

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