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Dr. Faylon’s steady desire and will to take the institution to the
next level and raise the competitiveness of the country’s
agriculture will always guide his vision.
A typical father would want his children to grow
up to be responsible citizens. A disciplinarian father would want
his children to be better than good. Dr. Patricio S. Faylon is a
remarkable father, at home and at work. Like a father to a growing
child, he nurtures the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry
and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD) as his own,
continuously pushing the agency to achieve its visions and be best
in its field.
Through his dedication and in behalf of all
members of PCARRD, the first ever National Techno Gabay Summit was
organized in partnership with the Southern Tagalog Agriculture and
Resources Research and Development Consortium (STARRDEC), the Cavite
State University (CvSU), and Market Encounter Goes to Manila (MEGMA).
Held on July 9 to 10, 2008, at SMX Convention Center in the Mall of
Asia Complex in Pasay City, the event named “Techno Gabay:
Makabagong Paraan sa Pagsulong ng Agham at Teknolohiya,” is one of
PCARRD’s banner programs. It aims to bring science-based
information and technology services to end-users in the agriculture,
forestry, and natural resources (AFNR) sectors.
Fatherhood
He calls this chapter of his professional life
preparation. Becoming the top official of PCARRD did not happen
overnight. A degree in BS Agriculture at the University of the
Philippines-Los Baños, an MS in Ruminant Nutrition/Production
Economic at Illinois University, and a PhD in UP- Los Baños
prepared by Dr. Faylon to rise from the ranks and become the
executive director of an agency tasked to lead in the country’s
agriculture, forestry and natural resources (AFNR) research and
development. He also held positions in different local and
international organizations. He alsp led the Los Baños Science
Community Foundation from 2000 to 2005.
Impressive educational qualifications, however,
are not enough make a good agency chief for leading a renowned
R&D institution is no mean feat. One has to have enough
experience and determination to handle such responsibility. Dr.
Faylon’s proficiency in implementing regional and international
projects proves his worth as a leader through smallholder farming
and sustainable agriculture, as well as in natural resources
management. Dr. Faylon has led researchers, published more than 50
papers that he presented at international and local conferences,
symposia and workshops.
The job
Dr. Faylon dealt with this challenge by
nurturing PCARRD and instituting the four S&T banner programs.
Strategic R&D: he is the first to push for
the implementation and increased funding of the modern agriculture
and forest biotechnology R&D programs, and various S&T
anchor programs aimed to directly address R&D, extension, and
policy need of the industries, such as in the mango, banana, native
chicken, biofuels and environment fields, among others.
In collaboration with the National Academy of
Science and Technology (NAST), he spearheaded the formulation of the
roadmap for the agriculture and forestry sectors known as
“Philippine Agriculture 2020.” To translate this long-term
agenda into specific and doable form, Dr. Faylon led PCARRD to
formulate the “S&T Agenda 2006-2010,” the blueprint of
S&T activities for the National Agriculture and Resources
Research and Development System.
R&D Results Utilization: Acquiring knowledge
is not enough. Putting it into good use is essential. For many
R&D agencies, outputs tend to pile up, depriving farmers and
entrepreneurs access to critical information and aggravating the
research and extension linkage problem. Dr. Faylon doesn’t want
R&D outputs go to waste. That’s why his supervision, the
Techno Gabay Program (TGP) was launched and strengthened.
TGP is designed for effective and sustainable
diffusion of information and technologies to the countryside. Its
four components are the Farmers’ Information and Technology
Services (FITS), and the Farmer-Scientist Bureau (FSB) (both started
in 1997 and became the precursor of the program), the Information,
Education and Communication (IEC), and the Information and
Communications Technology (ICT).
FITS or the Techno Pinoy Center is an IT
delivery service facility that enhances access of farmers, traders,
processors, entrepreneur, and other stakeholders to information and
technologies in agriculture and natural resources. Then there are
the IEC and ICT components, which intend to sustain the
communication requirements of FITS and FSB.
Under the program, farmers are not just
recipients of information. They also get to be active participants,
enablers, facilitators or initiators of technology development and
transfer processes.
Ten years after the establishment of the first
FITS center, the TGP has grown into more than 200 centers
nationwide. Dr. Faylon worked hard to generate more than P300
million to support the centers.
Governance and Capability Building: Part of
being a good father is discipline. Dr. Faylon knew this need and
worked to enhance the professionalism of PCARRD’s manpower. He is
credited for the agency’s ISO 9001:2000 certification in 2004 and
its renewal in 2007, which resulted in stronger and more organized
working relationship among the employees.
Policy Advocacy. Continuous guidance is vital
for a growing agency. This drove Dr. Faylon to become a leading
voice for the proposed Technology Transfer Bill, which advocates the
transfer and commercialization of technologies generated through
publicly funded research. PCARRD has also crafted the Biofuels
R&D program that encompasses programs on Jatropha and sweet
sorghum/cassava. These are sources of petroleum substitutes such as
biodiesel and bioethanol, which emit less carbon to the atmosphere.
Brighter future
Sustainability must be assured. It is not enough
for a person to perform well. Every achievement is ended with the
question: “What’s next?”
Dr. Faylon answers that question by persistent
implementation of the S&T Agenda 2006-2010 that focuses on the
needs of small farmers, and small and medium entrepreneurs in
agribusiness across the planned five mega-regions.
Along this line, he also pushes for continuous
resource generation, especially for the TGP to grade the FITS
centers. This will empower farmers and entrepreneurs in access
information, technologies, and markets. There will also be S&T
based farms in each center. The Magsasaka Siyentista-managed
S&T-based farm features technologies addressing concerns in farm
production. Each FITS center aims to be product-based, a feature
that sets them apart from other extension modalities.
Through this activity, Dr. Faylon also aims to
boost the capability of FITS centers to expand farmers’ access to
ICT-based services nationwide and support S&T based farms. Dr.
Faylon also hopes to persuade almost 50 percent of the LGUs to
support the FITS centers.
Who would have thought that this man’s
agricultural development aspiration would also be the goal of many
Filipino farmers? Dr. Faylon’s steady desire and will to take the
institution to the next level and raise the competitiveness of the
country’s agriculture will always guide his vision.
As Tom Peters puts it “Leaders don’t create
followers, they create more leaders.” Dr. Faylon is hopeful that
PCARRD’s programs to guide present and future farmers could
produce self-sufficient farmer-leaders who know where to get and how
and when to use the right farming information. And that
self-assurance is the best gift a child can give to his father in
return.
For more information, you may call the PCARRD
hotline at telephone numbers (049) 536-4990 and (049) 536-0016 or
log in at www.pcarrd.dost.gov.ph. [Fezoil Luz C. Decena, Precious
Valerie Silva, Pia Paula Mateo, and Yen Ocampo – S & T Media
Service]
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