With the gradual ease of holding face-to-face activities, the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) hosted the 3rd PCAARRD – Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) Partnership Healthcheck held on September 22, 2022, at the C.B. Perez Room, DOST-PCAARRD.
The Partnership Healthcheck is an initiative that started in 2019 and has been serving as a venue to jointly reflect on the performance towards the achievement of the shared partnership goals for sustainable agri-food systems through research for development and capacity-building activities. It is a strategy for holistically deepening the partnership that has endured for almost 40 years.
This year’s Healthcheck focused on strengthening and institutionalizing the DOST-PCAARRD and ACIAR partnership by assessing and reflecting on the past year’s performance, emerging opportunities, risks, and updating processes. The two agencies worked on harmonizing processes for more efficient and effective streamlining of in-house review and evaluation of various collaborative programs and projects.
In their opening messages, Dr. Reynaldo V. Ebora, DOST-PCAARRD executive director, and Dr. Peter Horne, ACIAR general manager for Country Partnerships, described the relationship of PCAARRD and ACIAR as an exemplar – an important partnership that continues to flourish and evolve over the years. As part of efforts to sustain such a partnership, the organizations regularly discuss their joint projects and efforts to further achieve mutual benefit.
“If I were to use three concepts to describe our relationship, they are trust, respect, and supporting each other for mutual benefit,” said Dr. Horne.
Ms. Hazel Aniceto, ACIAR country manager, presented the 12 jointly-monitored active projects and 8 pipeline research projects of DOST-PCAARRD and ACIAR; while Ms. Mara Faylon, ACIAR assistant country manager, highlighted the key achievements and updates on several capacity building activities such as the signing of the Exchange of Letter of the PhilDOST – ACIAR Fellowship Program on July 25, 2022; the completion of the ACIAR-DOST-PCAARRD Agribusiness Master Class; co-designing and implementation of the John Dillon Fellowship (JDF) Program Philippines; the roll-out of the John Allwright Fellowship (JAF) application modality, and the mobilization of the Meryl Williams Fellowship. Ms. Jing Damaso-Grey, ACIAR communication officer, also shared the initiatives of ACIAR in promoting and increasing the visibility of the partnership through various communication platforms and activities.
During the meeting, the project development and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) process map co-developed by ACIAR and DOST-PCAARRD was discussed and improved based on feedback from the participants. The process map visualizes the integration of the processes of both organizations to ensure the alignment of internal requisites in the development and implementation of programs and projects. The document was approved for adoption by Dr. Ebora and Dr. Horne.
In the spirit of continuous learning and improvement, Policy Coordination and Monitoring Division (PCMD) Director Lilian G. Bondoc facilitated the discussion of lessons learned, specifically on strategies that have worked well and what can be improved. Ms. Cecilia S. Alaban, science research specialist II of the Crops Research Division (CRD), DOST-PCAARRD and Meryl William fellow, expressed her gratitude for the ongoing Fellowship that she is participating. She hopes that other DOST-PCAARRD staff members would also be able to participate in the Fellowship’s next cohort.
Likewise, Ms. Meliza F. Abeleda, assistant director of the Socio-economics Research Division (SERD), DOST-PCAARRD, shared that ACIAR is one of the longstanding partners of SERD, specifically on projects covering impact assessment, agribusiness, and policy development. “What works best is that we are being treated as family and as co-equal. There is mutual accountability and transparency,” she added.
Dr. Ebora and Dr. Horne also shared their vision for the partnership in the next five years. Both agreed to further strengthen scholarship programs and have them more integrated with research and development (R&D) projects, develop programs to support the returning researchers from Australia, and encourage the partnership to harness the opportunities for collaboration on emerging innovative areas of interest for both the Philippines and Australia. Dr. Ebora also reiterated that the Council is in a strong position to say that the partnership is truly working. Dr. Horne also shared his advocacy to promote the partnership lessons of DOST-PCAARRD and ACIAR with its other country partners in Asia, the Pacific, and Africa.
PCAARRD representatives who also participated in the Healthcheck include Dir. Marita A. Carlos; Dr. Juanito T. Batalon; Dr. Fezoil Luz C. Decena; Dr. Synan S. Baguio; Dr. Mari-Ann M. Acedera; Dr. Lilian G. Bondoc; Dir. Noel A. Catibog; Ms. Cecilia S. Alaban; Ms. Princess Alma B. Ani; Ms. Hannah May B. Odemer, Dr. Dalisay E. Cabral; Ms. Adoracion B. Armada; and the PCMD Secretariat.
Both institutions have committed to continue working together and exploring innovative ways to deliver agricultural research for development in the Philippines and Australia in more years to come.