UN agency taps Phl-based SEA center for agri-biz proj

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna, Philippines  – A United Nations (UN) agency has commissioned a Southeast Asian center based here to undertake a project concerning agribusiness in Asia.

Tapped by the UN-Food and Agriculture Organization-Rural Infrastructure and Agro-Industries Division (FAO-AGS) to carry out the project was the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization-Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEAMEO SEARCA).

Philippine government-hosted SEARCA, headed by Director Gil C. Saguiguit Jr., is one of the 19 regional “centers of excellence” of SEAMEO, an intergovernment treaty body founded in 1965 to foster cooperation among Southeast Asian nations in the fields of education, science, and culture.

The project will undertake an appraisal of the institutional mandates for agribusiness support in Asia. It aims “to identify and characterize the organizational models being introduced by the Ministries of Agriculture in Asia, specifically in East, South, and Southeast Asia, to provide services to agribusiness and agro-industries.”

SEARCA said the results of the appraisal would provide sound basis for improving the FAO technical support and guidance to these Ministries.

Dr. Saguiguit said the project will be undertaken in two phases.

Two Phase 1 is a scooping survey to identify existing organizational structures with mandate related to agribusiness in East. South, and Southeast Asia.

Phase 2 will cover in-depth country cases for several countries to analyze the innovative organizational structures for agribusiness in terms of their mandates, functions, scope of services, institutional comparative advantage, and strengths and weaknesses.

“The study,” said Dr. Saguiguit, “aligns well with SEARCA’s mandate of institution building in agriculture and rural development and with its thrust of agricultural competitiveness. SEARCA will tap its existing networks and linkages in Southeast Asia as well as South and East Asia to facilitate the conduct of this study.”