PARIS, France – The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is set to once again tap the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) for the second phase of the Review and Assessment of the Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) in ASEAN. This was disclosed in a meeting between OECD officials and Dr. Gil C. Saguiguit, Jr., SEARCA Director, at the OECD headquarters in Paris last 1 March 2016.
SEARCA Director Dr. Gil C. Saguiguit, Jr. in Paris.SEARCA conducted the OECD-funded study to provide an overview of AIS in ASEAN Member States (AMS) with focus on solving long-term food security concerns among the AMS. The study covered governance and cross-country supply of agricultural innovations, public and private investments in AIS, and knowledge flows via education and extension. Its outputs will be used in the second phase of the study, which is an in-depth review of AIS policies in the individual ASEAN countries.
The AIS study is part of a bigger initiative of OECD with ASEAN titled “Building Food Security and Managing Risk: A Focus on Southeast Asia,” which ties in with SEARCA’s priority focus on food security within the overarching theme of inclusive and sustainable agricultural and rural development (ISARD) of its current five-year plan.
Dr. Saguiguit said OECD is keen to continue its collaboration with SEARCA after being referred to the Center at the ASEAN where SEARCA is widely regarded as a major player and resource center on agricultural and rural development in the region.