Agriculture Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development Leocadio S. Sebastian, in a commentary published by TransactionsNASTPhl, exhorted the science community to “think outside ourselves and ensure that our outputs result in societal outcomes for millions of farmers, fishers, stakeholders, and consumers. If our work supports societal outcomes and impacts on food security, attaining food security will not remain an uphill climb. “
“My experience working with our ASEAN neighbors, particularly Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, has shown me where we massively lag behind: we fail to scale or commercialize many of our Science and Technology (S&T) outputs and innovations. We take for granted our societal responsibility.”
“We have developed many ideas, tested numerous models and prototypes, conducted countless demonstrations and training programs, and published abundant materials. Yet many of these accomplishments come to naught,” he sighed.
He said that achieving societal outcomes necessitates identifying our “next users”—the individuals or entities that will use and disseminate our outputs on a broader scale. Our next users are typically our partners, government agencies, private sector entities, and NGOs.”
“We aim to influence their knowledge, skills, and attitudes to shape more people to foster a sense of ownership of our outputs,” he stressed.
Another failure to scale our S&T outputs is sustaining and supporting medium- to long-term plans. “Our plans are as transient as our leadership. We are constantly in a rush to solve problems, seeking immediate solutions, which often resulted in quick fixes and band aid solutions. Yet there are simply issues that escape the palliative effects of a band-aid. The profound sense of hopelessness and demotivation afflicting our farmers is one such affliction,” Sebastian underscored.
He explained the strategies of the Masagana Rice Industry Development Plan as: 1) Matatag or climate change adaptation; 2) Sama sama or clustering/consolidation to give farmers better leverage in every stage of the value chain; 3) Ganado– motivated and enthusiastic farmers in the rice value chain and 4) Napapanahon or digital transformation by mapping out areas of concern on yield, soil fertility, risks, etc.
Satellite technology gives us confidence in the accuracy of information as the basis for targeted intervention. Drones will soon be normalized for fertilizer application, and our farmers will manage their farms from their phones.
The latest technology transcends issues on the receptivity of our farmers. Some farmers may resist new methods, which could frustrate the efforts of our extension workers.
“We have service providers who can do the work precisely and affordably. All these thrusts will be included in province-specific rice industry development plans. We want farmers to use our technologies, but their mindset is not like ours. They see technologies as additional expense counter to their immediate concerns: higher prices for their palay, higher income,” he lamented.
In other countries, they did not just improve production—they also transformed the market.
Thus, a bountiful harvest should mean rich profits. So, we need to incentivize our farmers to be more productive by connecting them to the market and ensuring they earn a good income. Better incomes leading to higher rice self-sufficiency will be the most beneficial outcome.
That is the goal of MRIDP. (RDLC)