Agricultural
and biotechnology experts from around the Pacific Rim converged in Iloilo City on
Wednesday (Sept. 30) to develop regulatory frameworks, facilitate technology
transfer, encourage investment and strengthen public confidence regarding
biotechnology, in an effort to increase agricultural productivity and protect
the environment, with the ultimate objective of promoting food security. The
two-day High Level Policy Dialogue on Agricultural Biotechnology (HLPDAB), one
of a cluster of agriculture-focused Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
gatherings that are being held here this week, seek to widen the availability
of agricultural biotechnologies to help ensure adequate food supplies and boost
the livelihoods of farmers.
It focuses on improving innovation within the agricultural sector as a path towards greater food security. This includes cross-cutting support for agricultural biotechnologies to enhance crop yields and reduce losses due to weather, pests or post-harvest transport and handling.
Agricultural biotechnology, a revolutionary tool that is transforming the agricultural sector, can boost production for small, rural farmers and thus play a role in alleviating poverty.
Biotechnologies also have the capacity to lessen the impact of agriculture on the environment by limiting the need for pesticides and irrigation. However, their increased development and use require a complementary policy environment.
According to experts, when economies deploy varying rules and regulations for agricultural development and management, it becomes more difficult for new ideas and innovations to flow across borders
The APEC economies are intent on enhancing policy harmonization within the sector. Such harmonization is needed to lower barriers that impact agricultural trade and investment, and foster the co-development and transfer of biotechnology that can benefit small-scale farmers.
Measures that promote increased transparency and understanding of agricultural sector regulation are key agenda focuses. Another area of emphasis is providing governing bodies with knowledge and tools that support the implementation of best practices, identified through the sharing of experiences in biotechnologies and biogenetic resource management.
According to policymakers, coordinated agricultural policymaking and technical capacity building, for example, training on responsible investment principles and crop forecasting technology, can facilitate the more balanced adoption of biotechnologies in the region.
Agricultural and biotechnology experts, meanwhile, pointed out that science and technology are of great importance in ensuring food security. They stressed that as biotechnologies become a more integral component of agricultural production and as public confidence grows as their value becomes more apparent, there is an opportunity to take significant steps forward in addressing the region’s long-term agricultural demands.
Department of Agriculture Undersecretary and Chair of the 2015 APEC HLPDAB, Segfredo Serrano, also emphasized the importance of exploring new ideas and sharing of experiences among countries so that they benefit from these, and in imploring other economies that have not yet adopted modern technologies for agricultural development.
The first high-level policy dialogue on agricultural biotechnology took place in 2002. (PNA/PCOO News Release)
It focuses on improving innovation within the agricultural sector as a path towards greater food security. This includes cross-cutting support for agricultural biotechnologies to enhance crop yields and reduce losses due to weather, pests or post-harvest transport and handling.
Agricultural biotechnology, a revolutionary tool that is transforming the agricultural sector, can boost production for small, rural farmers and thus play a role in alleviating poverty.
Biotechnologies also have the capacity to lessen the impact of agriculture on the environment by limiting the need for pesticides and irrigation. However, their increased development and use require a complementary policy environment.
According to experts, when economies deploy varying rules and regulations for agricultural development and management, it becomes more difficult for new ideas and innovations to flow across borders
The APEC economies are intent on enhancing policy harmonization within the sector. Such harmonization is needed to lower barriers that impact agricultural trade and investment, and foster the co-development and transfer of biotechnology that can benefit small-scale farmers.
Measures that promote increased transparency and understanding of agricultural sector regulation are key agenda focuses. Another area of emphasis is providing governing bodies with knowledge and tools that support the implementation of best practices, identified through the sharing of experiences in biotechnologies and biogenetic resource management.
According to policymakers, coordinated agricultural policymaking and technical capacity building, for example, training on responsible investment principles and crop forecasting technology, can facilitate the more balanced adoption of biotechnologies in the region.
Agricultural and biotechnology experts, meanwhile, pointed out that science and technology are of great importance in ensuring food security. They stressed that as biotechnologies become a more integral component of agricultural production and as public confidence grows as their value becomes more apparent, there is an opportunity to take significant steps forward in addressing the region’s long-term agricultural demands.
Department of Agriculture Undersecretary and Chair of the 2015 APEC HLPDAB, Segfredo Serrano, also emphasized the importance of exploring new ideas and sharing of experiences among countries so that they benefit from these, and in imploring other economies that have not yet adopted modern technologies for agricultural development.
The first high-level policy dialogue on agricultural biotechnology took place in 2002. (PNA/PCOO News Release)
No comments:
Post a Comment