Aggie journalists' role in nat'l dev't extolled

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna , Philippines  – A research and graduate education administrator and a broadcast journalist-lawmaker have extolled the vital role that agriculture journalists play in national development.

“As agricultural journalists, your role in knowledge-generation and knowledge-sharing is key in pushing for the effective implementation of programs that work toward the development of the agriculture sector,” stressed Director Gil C. Saguiguit Jr. of the Los Baños-based Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA).

“You have been instrumental in advancing environmental conservation and development,” Rep. Angelo B. Palmones of Party-list AGHAM also cited the members of PAJ-CALABARZON (Philippine Agricultural Journalists Inc.). CALABARZON is Southern Tagalog Region 4A composed of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon.

Dr. Saguiguit and Palmores, director (on leave) of ABS-CBN’s Radio Network DZMM, spoke at the PAJ-CALABARZON 5th anniversary program held last March 31 at SEARCA on the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) campus.

Government-hosted SEARCA is one of the 20 “centers of excellence” of Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), an intergovernment treaty body founded in 1965 to foster cooperation among Southeast Asian nations in the fields of education, science, and culture.

PAJ is a nationwide organization of journalists and government information writers founded in 1976 to professionalize agriculture journalism in the country. It has established regional chapters, among them PAJ-CALABARZON, over the years.

Dr. Saguiguit, in a speech read for him by Deputy Director Francis F. Peñalba, stressed: “By writing about technological developments and informing us on related current and emerging concerns in agriculture, you have helped influence the farming sector, government, and research and development agencies in discussing those shared concerns and in developing and effecting appropriate actions.”

Acknowledging PAJ as SEARCA’s partner for years now, he said: “Communication experts, specifically agricultural journalists, have been instrumental in furthering our initiatives in promoting our goal of developing the agricultural and rural sectors in Southeast Asia.”

Dr. Saguiguit said that SEARCA’s core programs are graduate scholarships, research and development, and knowledge management.