PUP holds ASEANCONNECT 2017

The Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) recently hosted ASEANCONNECT, a forum on extension in higher education with more than 200 participants coming from various parts of the Asian region. The event not only brought together expert extension implementers from different institutions across the Philippines and in Asia but also served as a venue for the sharing of experiences of all those involved in extension services.

PUP, tagged as the country’s first polytechnic university, partnered with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) in holding the forum last Sept. 21-22, 2017 at the Century Park Hotel in Manila. ASEAN Deputy Director General for Socio-Cultural Community Department Vongthep Arthakaivalvatee delivered the keynote address. He presented the connectivity perspective which ASEAN aims to achieve by 2025 and commended the forum’s aim, which is to form a network of extension implementers in higher education institutions in the region.

Plenary speakers from universities in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Japan presented during the two-day event and shared their respective extension models. Likewise, representatives from the government of India and the Philippines as well as local and international private institutions and other civic organizations were also given the chance to share their advocacies during the plenary sessions. 

Dr. Gyanmudra of the National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, India’s Ministry of Rural Development presented her paper, “Enhancing Source of Livelihood Activities among Self-Help Group in Gram Panchayat in India,” while CHED Director for Planning, Research and Knowledge Management, Dr. Napoleon Juanillo assessed Philippine HEIs vis-à-vis ASEAN in his talk “Complementing the Philippine Higher Education Institutions’ Extension Framework towards ASEAN Priorities.”

Representing the S&T sector, Department of Science and Technology (DOST) National Capital Region director Jose B. Patalinjug III discussed “Mainstreaming S&T Support in Higher Education towards Community Development.”  Faculty members from state universities and colleges (SUCs) were updated on the “New PASUC Implementing Guidelines for Faculty Extension Service Engagement” through the presentation of CARAGA University president Dr. Anthony Penaso.

In between the plenary sessions were parallel paper presentations from various higher education institutions, both private and public, namely: Sorsogon State University, Palawan State University, Central Mindanao University, Dela Salle University, Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, Bulacan State University, Technological University of the Philippines, Cavite State University, University of the Philippines-Visayas and Cebu Normal University.

Highlighting ASEANCONNECT’s theme of “One ASEAN. One Framework. One Network” was the presentation of the proposed framework by Dr Maria Corazon Tapang-Lopez, senior vice president  of Centro Escolar, Las Pinas as well as the symbolic signing of the ASEAN Extension Network by all the forum speakers and participants.

The forum was an initiative of PUP headed by its president, Dr. Emanuel de Guzman, with the Office of the Vice President for Research, Extension and Development headed by Dr. Joseph Mercado as conference chair.