SEARCA News

In 2009, SEARCA and the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, Germany partnered for the Food Security Center (FSC) for an initial duration of five (5) years. FSC is one of the five excellence centers of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) program "EXCEED - Higher Education Excellence in Development Cooperation," funded by the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) of Germany. It aims to provide effective and innovative scientific contributions in research, teaching, and policy advice towards the realization of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG's) of eradicating poverty and hunger in collaboration with partner Higher… Read more

Malang, Indonesia - Universitas Brawijaya (UB) organized its Annual Agricultural Engineering Lecture Series, through its Department of Agricultural Engineering, on 10 June 2020. The activity, which is regularly offered offline, was conducted live via web streaming due to COVID-19. It was also opened to the public for the first time as it was originally held exclusively for UB students to gain knowledge from experts in the field of agricultural engineering. The lecture was also conducted in collaboration with SEARCA and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). The guest lecturer, Dr. Nazmi Mat Nawi, is a leading researcher in Malaysia who was recently… Read more

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna – The Southeast Asian University Consortium for Graduate Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC) recently awarded the UC Seed Fund for Collaborative Research to three (3) initial recipients for the first quarter of 2020. Dr. Muhammad Heikal bin Ismail, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), is collaborating with Dr. Ngadisih, Dr. Joko Nugroho W.K., Dr. Bambang Suwignyo and Dr. Hatma Suryatmojo, from Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), for the project “Investigating the effect of food and agricultural waste on the quality of biogas and bio-fertilizer”. The project aims to… Read more

Mobility restrictions induced by the COVID-19 pandemic pushes 14.68 million more families to poverty in Southeast Asia, as drops in farm labor by 1.4 percent and agricultural production by 17 million tons impact a USD 3.76 billion decline in gross domestic product, a study says. Published in the Asian Journal of Agriculture and Development (AJAD), "Assessing the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Agricultural Production in Southeast Asia: Toward Transformative Change in Agricultural Food Systems" recommends systematic transformation through agricultural systems approach to ensure resilient, sustainable, and productive foods systems to counter food security shocks in the region. "Seeing food… Read more

Smallholder farms and agriculture-based small and medium enterprises (SMEs) stand to become more competitive and to connect with national and international markets when they form agricultural clusters, according to a regional think tank. According to the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), more than 80% of food produced and consumed in the developing world come from smallholder farms dominating Southeast Asia. SEARCA Director Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio explained that at less than five hectares each, these smallholder farms are constrained by their remote and dispersed locations making access to modern technology, services, and information… Read more

“For the longest time, our food production systems have been the main drivers of biodiversity loss,” surmised Dr. Glenn B. Gregorio, Director of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), “once lost, biodiversity for food and agriculture – i.e., all the species that support our food systems and sustain the people who provide/grow our food – cannot be recovered.” Dr. Gregorio will thus speak on​ how crucial agricultural transformation through agricultural innovation ​is for food systems ​to achieve a balance between biodiversity conservation and socio-economic… Read more

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna – SEARCA and Sejong University (SU) in Seoul, South Korea recently established a joint scholarship program for MS/PhD degree by research. This program aims to enhance the capacities of Southeast Asian scientists and researchers in developing new agricultural solutions and frontier research in the fields of Agricultural Biotechnology, Aquaculture, Food Science, and International Development through quality graduate studies. Sejong University (SU) traces its roots to 1940 as the Kyung Sung Humanities Institute and then as a full university in 1978. Today, SU is a renowned world class university which uses problem-based learning approach in its curriculum while… Read more

Los Baños, Laguna – SEARCA recognized six outstanding experts in the academe from 16 endorsed applications by different universities in Southeast Asia for the Regional Professorial Chair Grant. This award is given to those who Accelerate Transformation through Agricultural Innovation (ATTAIN) in Southeast Asia which was based on the Center’s 11th Five-Year Plan. All of the awardees have contributed greatly to agricultural innovation through their research and inventions. Among them, three came from Universiti Putra Malaysia, one from Kasetsart University in Thailand, and two from the Philippines, Mariano Marcos State University and Visayas State University respectively. For the FY 2019-2020… Read more

True to its commitment of being a leading enabler and champion of excellence in agriculture and rural development (ARD), the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) will launch its new initiative called SEARCA Online Learning and Virtual Engagement (SOLVE), a webinar series highlighting concrete actions that realize the Center's vision of ARD in Southeast Asia. In the maiden release of SOLVE on 28 April 2020 at 10:00, SEARCA will be drumbeating the pressing food security concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hon. William T. Dar, Secretary, Department of Agriculture of the Philippines, will elaborate on… Read more

In response to the ongoing salinity and drought concerns in Vietnam's Mekong River Delta (MRD), the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) has recently released a policy paper that analyzes the economic importance of the rice production sector, the extent of salinity and drought in MRD including how it can be exacerbated by climate change-related hazards, and specific policy interventions that must be in placed both at the national and farm levels. In the paper, SEARCA has noted the importance of rice production in the MRD as the sector has been, and will… Read more