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LOS BAÑOS, Philippines — Forty-two agriculture graduates preparing for the national Licensure Examination for Agriculturists (LEA) visited the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) on September 11, 2026 to learn about the Center’s education, research, and innovation initiatives.
The delegation comprised graduates from state and private universities across Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao enrolled at the Los Baños-based Upstep Review Center (URC). This marked the second cohort hosted by the regional research center to bridge the gap between academic preparation and professional agricultural practice.
Translating strategy into action: SEARCA’s 4Ps Framework
Sharon Malaiba, Head of the SEARCA Partnerships Unit, briefed the delegates on the center’s mandate to elevate rural household welfare across Southeast Asia through core programs in education, research, and innovation. Malaiba detailed SEARCA’s 12th Five-Year Development Plan: SUSTAIN Southeast Asia, which anchors regional operations around four core pillars:
Pocket, Plate, Place, and People.
To improve farmers’ incomes (Pocket), SEARCA supports value-chain roadmaps, technology seed funding through the Grants for Research towards Agricultural Innovative Solutions (GRAINS) program, and enterprise mentoring via the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security Enhancement (SAFE) Acceleration Program.
Addressing food security and nutrition (Plate), the center leads the School-Plus-Home Garden Program, conducts regional school meal policy evaluations, and assesses dietary affordability benchmarks across Cambodia, Nepal, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka to support evidence-based nutrition policies.
To enhance climate resilience and landscape management (Place), SEARCA implements circular and sustainable farming models. Notable initiatives include the Rice Straw Bioenergy Hub, which converts farm residues into clean energy and biochar; the AquASEAN sustainable aquaculture partnership; the ASEAN Land Use, Land-Use Change, and Forestry (LULUCF) geospatial mapping project; and the cross-regional ASEACA One Health initiative.
Under the human capacity pillar (People), Malaiba highlighted opportunities available to early-career professionals, including graduate study scholarships, micro-credentials in climate change, hands-on upskilling in agri-robotics, and institutional leadership training.
Youth engagement and interactive learning
During the open forum, examinees inquired about graduate scholarship pathways and professional development programs.
The visit concluded with an interactive tour of the SEARCA Hub for Agriculture and Rural Innovation for the Next Generation (SHARING) AgriMuseum, showcasing modern agricultural technologies. Delegates also screened episodes of the SEARCA Youth in Agri Talk Show, which spotlight school garden models and youth-led climate adaptation across Southeast Asia.
SEARCA continues to engage emerging professionals and academic institutions to prepare the next generation of agricultural leaders for complex food system and rural development challenges across the region. (/)
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Source: SEARCA