HARMONIZING HIGHER EDUCATION WITH SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE TOWARDS FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY IN THE PHILIPPINES: POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

DR. TEODORO MENDOZA – PROF., UPLB

DR. CELY S. BINOYA – PROF. VI AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, APEAEN

RATIONALE

This set of policy recommendations is being submitted by the SIANI-HESA

Philippines Expert Group after a 2-day dialogue and writeshop held at the

University of the Philippines Diliman campus on 22-23 July 2015 and 2

preliminary meetings, one at Central Bicol State University of Agriculture on

June 16, 2015 and at the University of the Philippines at Los Banos on June

17, 2015 .

The dialogue was coordinated by Dr. Wayne Nelles, Regional Coordinator of

the Higher Education for Sustainable Agriculture (HESA) and Food Security in

Southeast Asia Project of SIANI, with UP Los Baños Professor Teodoro

Mendoza as the Meeting Chair and principal organizer for UPLB and Dr. Cely

Binoya for CBSUA.

Participant

s during

the HESA

Dialogue

at UP

Diliman

Hotel on

July 23-

24, 2015

RATIONALE

The focus of the dialogue is to ascertain the status of Higher Education for

Sustainable agriculture and food security in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)

and State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in the country.

There are 2180 HEIs in the country both public and private.

113 are State Universities and Colleges, 57 of which are offering agriculture and

forestry programs - mostly big SUCs

As of 2011, 170 HEIs are offering degree programs in agriculture and forestry

The leading HEIs in offering sustainable agriculture in the country participated in the

dialogue.

OBJECTIVES OF THE POLICY BRIEF

• Present a bird's eye-view of higher education on agriculture in the

Philippines

• Describe briefly the State of the Art of agriculture education in the

country.

•Generate a set of recommendations to resolve national issues and

concerns

KEY OBSERVATIONS ON THE EDUCATIONAL SITUATION FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE IN THE PHILIPPINES: • Very few students now are taking up agriculture courses throughout the country

• Courses are geared to teaching more theories with less or no practice

• Curricula are not geared toward sustainable agriculture

• Agricultural universities and colleges still teach unsustainable conventional agricultural

practices and technologies in crop and livestock production like crop monoculture/specialized-

less diversified production systems, heavy use of chemical inputs, etc.

• Climate change adaptive farming practices , technologies and systems are not adequately

addressed in HEIs and SUCs curriculum

REALITIES BROUGHT ABOUT BY ASEAN ECONOMIC COOPERATION (AEC) ARE NOT ACTED UPON • Farmers and fishers who are the primary producers of food have generally low farm

productivity.

• Improved farming practices and technologies are the basic factors that can increase farm productivity and

income, and alleviate poverty. Poverty is still a rural phenomenon.

• Technologies geared towards increasing farm productivity are catering mostly the resource

rich farmers farming in favourable areas , and if there are technologies /practices

generated through research for the capital scarce farmer in the uplands or less favourable

areas, they remain in the box as they hardly reach the farmers and fishers.

• Farmer-led, scientists supported and community-based technology transfer is necessary to

facilitate adoption of these technologies for the improvement of farm productivity.

REALITIES BROUGHT ABOUT BY ASEAN ECONOMIC COOPERATION (AEC) ARE NOT ACTED UPON • The high external input technology-led productivity mantra of single commodity agriculture

must be transformed into multifunctional and sustainable practices – led systems by

capturing what the current science and technology could offer and blended with experiential

learnings of the past.

• Food and nutrition security, much more, safe foods that promote health and wellness cannot

be achieved at the expense of the farmers who produce but earn less for their labours.

• Farming is an enterprise, hence the logistics of the whole production and marketing chains - transport,

packaging, storage) and marketing requirements of agricultural products must be addressed.

• A holistic view is not only important but necessary if Sustainable Agriculture is to be made

consistent along the framework of sustainable development (Read Note No.1) whose goals

emphasize economic development, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability.

GENERAL AGREEMENT REACHED DURING THE DIALOGUE

• 1) there is a need for students to be more grounded on Sustainable

Agriculture towards food and nutrition security of the Filipino people, while

serving their learning needs; and

• 2) the current Bachelor of Science in Agriculture curriculum is inadequate in SA

concepts and practices; instead, it is clustered into the different fields of

specialization in agriculture.

POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS • 1) DEFINITION OF "SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE"

• There can never be sustainable development without sustainable agriculture or vice

versa. Living is not eating but no food in 3 days is unimaginable.

• The shift to sustainable agriculture fits the 17 goals of sustainable development that

encompasses not only agro-ecological principles but also business values, because if the

enterprise, project or activity does not generate adequate income for the farmers /SA

practitioner, there is no point pursuing it. (Read Note No.1. 17 SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT GOALS)

•

THE CONCEPT OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

• Sustainable agriculture must be viewed as the art, science and philosophy of

producing the food, feed, fiber and fuel needs of the present generation

without sacrificing the long-term impacts of practices and technologies on the

environment and biodiversity.

• SA farmers and practitioners are not only able to meet their household needs

but also improve their lives out of the values they add to farm produce that are

safe and that promote health and wellness.

GOVERNMENT’S SUPPORT TO SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

• While sustainable agriculture is not equated to organic agriculture, but it is important to point out that

the Philippines has a law on Organic Agriculture, Republic Act No.10068 of 2010 which declared

that ”it is the policy of the State to promote, propagate, develop further and implement the practice of

organic agriculture in the Philippines that will cumulatively condition and enrich the fertility of the soil,

increase farm productivity, reduce pollution and destruction of the environment, prevent the depletion of

natural resources, further protect the health of farmers, consumers, and the general public, and save on

imported farm inputs”.

• Towards this end, a comprehensive program for the promotion of community-based organic agriculture

systems which include, among others, farmer-produced purely organic fertilizers such as compost, pesticides

and other farm inputs, together with a nationwide educational and promotional campaign for their use and

processing as well as adoption of organic agriculture system as a viable alternative shall be undertaken.

• The State recognizes and supports the central role of the farmers, indigenous people and other stakeholders

at the grassroots in this program.

2. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT & UPGRADING

• Formulating and experimenting on the Sustainable Agriculture (SA) curriculum with

experiential learning:

• Silliman University curriculum with a feasibility study as the final exam of each graduate

• SA curriculum with students spending the final year playing different roles in a successful farm

• Student mobility leading to field learning – SA curriculum with students doing farm practice in

different successful farms in different locations

• Curriculum adapted from the European folk high school philosophy where a student prepares

his/her own learning program for 1-2 years by establishing and running an actual farm in an

accessible place

2. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT & UPGRADING

• The entrepreneurial aspects of the SA curriculum must be emphasized and

internalized by the students upon graduation or even during their stay in the

college or in the university by practicing it.

• Integrating the concept of disaster risk reduction and climate change

adaptation in the SA curriculum.

• Along side the individual gains or benefits a student derived in acquiring

formal education in any college or university are the ethical and public

service orientation of any curriculum for any major fields. This includes the SA

curriculum.

3. INTERNATIONALIZATION & FILIPINIZATION OF EDUCATION • Modelling the internationalization of education in Sustainable Agriculture and

its Filipinization:

• Setting up an outcome based model curriculum that requires regional and international collaborative education

between HEIs here and abroad, and supporting willing SUCs/HEIs

• Notwithstanding internationalization goals is setting up an outcome based model curriculum that requires

intensive Filipinization of SA education in the Philippines and enhancing support and cooperation among

SUCs/HEIs .

• ASEAN International Mobility of Students (AIMS) Program – the Philippines in 2014 got on

board to be part of the AIMS Program. In 2013, CHED selected 12 HEIs in the country with

identified degree programs including agriculture to be fielded under AIMS. AIMS is grounded

on several objectives; two of these are: (i) for knowledge and skills enrichment and (ii) for

cross-cultural understanding and basic respect of ASEAN cultural diversity.

3. INTERNATIONALIZATION & FILIPINIZATION OF EDUCATION • Local Student Mobility (LSM) Program – this can be a component of HESA

among SUCs and HEIs through CHED. This is necessary because within the

Philippines, cross-cultural understanding and respect is still a gray area among

our peoples.

• The Philippine Government is committed to ASEAN Economic Cooperation

(AEC) . Nonetheless, there needs to be a parallel commitment to

“Filipinization” which is geared towards the local utilization and mobilization

of our country’s agricultural and human resources to promote sustainable

agriculture.

4. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT • Grounded on holistic, integrative- multidisciplinary sciences, R&D in

Sustainable Agriculture must be intensified through the:

• Conduct of participatory R&D projects (famer-led, scientists supported, community wide) on

Sustainable Agriculture

• Generation of viable SA models in the different HEIs and/or SUCs representing agro ecological

zones (Philippines being an archipelagic country with long latitude and variable altitude being

hilly to mountainous terrain- farming in more than 18% slopes)

• Organizing one Central House for SA for coordination, information sharing, and learning from

each other innovations and creativities.

• Strengthening the network linkage among the academe and the industries as SA is knowledge-led

development pathways of production-to-consumption chains. The entrepreneurial & livelihood

systems approach must redound to Sustainable Agriculture.

5. EXTENSION •HEIs working with farmers, with professors/ instructors/

researchers/ scientists on a “doing and learning mode”,

capitalizing on ones’ strength and recognizing each

weaknesses .

•Professors/instructors/researchers/scientists and farmers

following the value chain and learning from each stage:

Household Community Province Region Country Southeast

Asia

5. EXTENSION • SUCs/HEIs giving work load credit for extension activities

equivalent or at par with instruction and research.

• For official recognition, CHEd may issue a Memorandum Order

(CMO) requiring all HEIs to perform extension services, as the third

equally important function of all HEIs.

• The Board of Regents or Trustees of an HEI may also pass a resolutions on the necessity

of conducting Extension in their respective choice of agro-ecological zones.

•

6. SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE PRACTITIONERS • Awarding of equivalent degrees to SA farmer practitioners to give them

credibility and prestige, so that other farmers may follow their examples; their

farms credited or recognized as SA learning centers; and monetary reward

such as lifetime pension when they reach legal retirement age; or any other

similar awards patterned after our outstanding teachers/professors,

researchers and scientists( see note no.2 )

• Together with the SUCs/HEIs professors/instructors/researchers/scientists, the

SA farmer practitioners awardee, shall jointly convince other farmers to

become SA practitioners, on a doing and learning mode and this job of

convincing others should cascade or radiate to other communities.

7. CHED POLICIES ON CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

• Revisit CHED policies in instituting curricular amendments and

enhancement geared towards offering BSA major in Sustainable

Agriculture initially and BS Sustainable Agriculture in the long

term (10 years from 2016).

• The present CHED-mandated curricular program is made up of different

elements treated independently, and students are expected to integrate

at the end.

• It could become a stronger program if agriculture is seen in its entirety;

where people, technology, natural resources and environment are

interacting to meet food and nutrition security, health and wellness of the

society.

7. CHED POLICIES ON CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

•The process that CHEd takes in evaluating proposed new

curricular programs is too long.

• Decision process must be decentralized given the fact that each SUC has

its own Board of Trustees or Board of Regents.

• It should be more time-efficient so the academe can address pertinent

concerns, needs and situations impressed upon by the unique agro-

ecological zones giving rise to the local agri-industry

8. AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES • Instruction, research and extension must match or supply the

manpower needs of the agro-based industries, not to mention the

cost-efficient techniques, prototyping tools and machine

requirements from raw material production to processing.

• While economic viability is central to any enterprise, resource enhancement

rather than degradation is equally important alongside energy efficiency

and low carbon emission(see note no.3)

9. BUDGETARY SUPPORT

• The Philippines budget for education is only 2.5% of our GDP while UNESCO recommends 6% . With

time, this budget must be increased and line budget for Sustainable Agriculture must be included in the

general appropriations act (GAA).

• The Philippines allocate only 0.2% of its GDP on R&D (Gross expenses on Research and Development or

GERD). UNESCO recommends at least 1% of GDP.

• Our ASEAN neighbours have exceeded the UNESCO’s 1% recommended allocation for GERD. South Korea,

Japan and Singapore have 3.4% GERD. Agriculture is not a standalone industry.

• R/D for the allied industries- machines manufacture, transport/logistics, equipment/tools, processing

technologies and the equipment required for processing must be locally fabricated, hence , supported.

• Academe-private industry partnership projects must be enhanced, promoted and facilitated to reduce

costs of R/D , generate readily usable and viable technologies and generate more funding among

HEIs staff involved while performing their trilogy of functions- instruction, research and extension.

10. MONITORING AND EVALUATION • The Technical Panel for Agriculture Education (TPAE) that performs monitoring and evaluation

of agriculture programs, including Research, Development and Extension Programs of Higher

Education Institutions in the country must have deep understanding and strong background on

sustainable agriculture that is grounded on the principles of agro-ecology.

•

• Graduates of Agriculture and Forestry programs must have knowledge and skills in the use of

Geographic Information System as decision support tool for agriculture landscape fine-tuning

towards sustainable agriculture and biodiversity conservation. They must be given priority for

hiring by the Department of Agriculture, DENR and the LGUs.

•

Pictorials during the HESA Dialogue

Pictorials during the HESA Dialogue

NOTES: • No.1. 17 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS*

• (http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/17-development-goals-2030-32857916 . Accessed Aug.4,2015)

• 1.End poverty in all its forms everywhere.

• 2.End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.

• 3.Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

• 4.Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

• 5.Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.

• 6.Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

• 7.Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.

• 8.Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.

• 9.Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.

• 10.Reduce inequality within and among countries.

NOTES • 11.Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

• 12.Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.

• 13.Take urgent actions to combat climate change and its impacts.

• 14.Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

• 15.Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat

desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

• 16.Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build

effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.

• 17.Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.

• *The 193 member states of the United Nations have agreed on 17 new development goals to be achieved by

2030. World leaders will formally adopt the goals at a summit meeting in late September, just before their annual

meeting at the U.N. General Assembly. The goals will replace the eight Millennium Development Goals which were

adopted at a summit in 2000 and are to be completed by the end of 2015.

NOTES

• Note 2. Scientific Career System

• http://www.scientificcareersystem.ph/index.php/about-us. Accessed Aug.4,2015)

• The Scientific Career System was first institutionalized through Executive Order No. 784 on

March 17, 1982 by the late President Ferdinand E. Marcos. It was formally organized on July

19, 1983 with the issuance of Executive Order 901 Prescribing the Rules and Regulations to

Implement the Scientific Career System. The System was initiated at the National Science and

Technology Agency (now the Department of Science and Technology) being the primary

agency in the field of scientific and technological development. Through Presidential Decree

No. 1416, the Civil Service Commission was tasked to administer the implementation of the

System with DOST as its co-implementor.

NOTES • The System was further strengthened through the enactment of the Republic Act 8439 or the Magna Carta for Scientists, Engineers, Researchers and other Science and Technology

Personnel in the Government which provides benefits and allowances to conferred scientists under the System pursuant to Section 5 of said law.

• The System is now being administered by the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) which also houses the Scientific Career Council Secretariat.

• The Scientific Career System is a system of recruitment, career progression, recognition and reward of scientists in the public service as a means of developing a pool of highly

qualified and productive scientific personnel. The System is characterized by:

• 1. Entrance the career progression or advancement based on qualifications, merit and scientific productivity;

• 2. Career paths that shall allow scientists to develop within their respective areas of expertise without leaving their status as scientists; and

• 3. Incentives and rewards to ensure attraction and retention of highly qualified persons in the science and technology sector.

• The SCS covers the following disciplines: Natural Sciences , Agricultural Sciences , Engineering and Technology , Medical Sciences

• There are five ranks in the Scientific Career System with their corresponding salary grades:

• Scientist I – SG 26 , Scientist II – SG 27 , Scientist III – SG 28, Scientist IV – SG 29 Scientist V – SG 30

• Note 3. Executive Order 174- Institutionalizing The Philippine Greenhouse Gas Inventory Management And Reporting System signed by President Aquino last 24 November,

2014.Where under Sect.2 of the E.O stipulates that there should be accounting and reporting of GHG emissions from identified key source sectors in order to develop and

maintain centralized, comprehensive, and integrated data on GHGs; develop a system ,for the archiving, reporting, monitoring, and evaluating GHG inventories in all key sectors;

and facilitate continuous capacity building initiatives in the conduct of GHG inventories to ensure application of updated methodologies.

•