Survey reveals Phl’s unwise allocation of R&D resources

CEBU, Philippines - A study conducted by the Philippine Institute of Development Studies (PIDS) on public and private expenditure on research and development, showed that the very limited R&D (research and development) resources were inefficiently allocated among various sectors.

The study showed that there is severe shortage of R&D personnel in the country and that linkage between the government-funded R&D institutions with the private sector is quite weak.

According to the study, this is evident in the under-utilization by the industries of technologies developed by various R&D institutions like, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), the National Fisheries Research and Development Institute, and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

One of the weaknesses identified that would derail the growth of Central Visayas is the weak S&T and R&D base.

Aside from S&T and R&D, there is also a need to strengthen extension services to ensure that the technologies and knowledge products developed are effectively brought to the market.

Moreover, for the S&T development efforts to effectively lead to improvement in product quality, the region also needs to address the problem of common support facilities for product quality assurance like the lack of testing centers and standardization agencies.

For the region to be competitive in the global market, it has to address some of the issues that constrained it from achieving higher productivity.

Unless the S&T and R&D sectors are strengthened the region may continue to suffer from low productivity levels.

Nationality, the productivity level of the region’s services sector paled in comparison with the productivity performance of Metro Manila’s services sector.

In 2009, the service sector in Central Visayas posted only a labor productivity of P43,840 per worker, which was barely half the productivity of Metro Manila’s services sector.

With Central Visayas lagging behind other countries and even behind other regions in productivity promotions, it is not surprising that that region did not also make significant progress in transforming the structure of its business sector.

National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA-7) record showed that micro-enterprises continue to dominate the region’s business sector. They account for roughly 90 percent of total number of business establishments in Central Visayas.

Small enterprises are at a distant second with nine percent share of the businesses in the region. Medium and large enterprises constitute less than one percent each of the total number of business establishments here.

Aside from improving the S&T and R&D base, other issues that drag the promotion of productivity especially in the region include; the huge pool of unskilled and low-skilled workers;  low capital intensity; inadequate productivity improvement interventions,  and lack of opportunities for full, decent and productive employment.

Even interventions made by other collegial bodies including the Philippine Quality and Productivity Movement (PQPM) have not resulted in widespread adoption of quality and productivity practices at the firm level.

Apparently, since the productivity movement was launched in the region during the 1980s, productivity improvement efforts have not moved forward to translate productivity awareness into specific initiatives at the firm level. (FREEMAN)