Monday, July 10, 2006
RP's biotech products to find niche in global market
FINDING market-based biotechnology products in the country is now the latest concern of various stakeholders in the field.
In a video conference held Friday involving the Davao media and the biotech advocates in Manila, it was bared that a study is now in the offing to determine the extensiveness of the biotech production in the different areas of the country.
"We are encouraging the Department of Science and Technology in every region to come up with a comprehensive survey as to how wide people in every area practice biotech production," Hibridigm Consulting Inc. chief executive officer Ma. Antonia Odelia Arroyo said during the conference.
She explained how important is the study in contributing progress to the efforts of biotechnology especially in its aim to go global.
For instance, she cited there are a number of industrial and agricultural biotech products, which can be sourced from Mindanao or if not be processed in any potential regions.
"We only need to get all these information as to what biotech products can we specialize on so that we can immediately capture the international market," Arroyo said.
She cited "banaba" as a biotech product now being produced by a local company and is being sold to Belgium.
A study of the Asian Productivity Organization (APO) showed that Philippines ranked third among Asian countries, which are at the frontline in conducting biotech research, along with China and Korea.
Arroyo admitted that efforts have been pushed to further address certain issues that involve biotechnology such as the creation of a well-defined national policy and program, adequate human resources, a change in the mindset of the public, as well as the international technology transfer.
In terms of government support, stakeholders claimed that there is an active assistance given by the National Government for the development of such sector.
"It is not true that we are not getting enough support from the government. What we lack is the cooperation and coordination between the public and the private sectors, which is highly needed to pursue these efforts," Arroyo explained.
It was bared that if only the private or the business sector would constantly share notes with the government sector to know how each could be of help to another, the easier it would be for the Philippines to identify the most market-based biotech product that the country could be well-known of around the world.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (July 10, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
