Karen Lou S. Mabagos, DOST-ITCU
“The needs and opportunities are better known at the region, province, town, and community level”, Secretary Fortunato T. de la Peña said in his concluding remarks at the High-Level Policy Dialogue on Inclusive Innovation held on 17 September 2021.
The Dialogue titled “Accelerating COVID-19 Recovery through Inclusive Innovation” was jointly organized by the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). It was participated in by high-level officials from the Philippine Government including those from the Offices of the President’s Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei Nograles, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, Senator Juan Edgardo Angara, and the DOST Secretary.
Panelists, presenters, and speakers discussed the current approaches on inclusive innovation in the Philippines at the legislative, policy, and institutional levels and their importance. Secretary de la Peña reiterated the points made by some of the esteemed panelists.
Secretary Nograles, on the other hand, cited the importance of public-private cooperation in developing innovations to be inclusive. Senator Angara highlighted the necessity for a good ecosystem while Senator Gatchalian emphasized the significance of connectivity. These are all basic requirements in our overall effort.
The DOST Secretary was invited to deliver the concluding remarks in the High-Level Policy Dialogue. Secretary de la Peña reiterated that the needs and opportunities to speed up recovery through inclusive innovation are better known at the region, province, town, and community level. This is the rationale behind the DOST’s Science for Change Program.
Secretary de la Peña also pointed out that other sectors in society have crucial roles to play in the country’s recovery. He said that industry or private sector can largely contribute to innovation which is also evident in the DOST’s Small Enterprises Technology Upgrading Program. He further stressed that there is the need for investment by local government units (LGUs) and national government agencies (NGAs) in innovative ventures such as local dairy plants, tissue culture laboratories, and inter-island transportation. If trained appropriately, the marginalized communities can be more independent, self-sufficient, and sustainable. In terms of connectivity, the science chief revealed that local community networks projects are underway.
The country needs to advance to Industry 4.0 and this could be done through revamping current programs, aside from developing new ones geared towards this objective. The science chief highlighted that the innovations should address productivity improvement in different fields like manufacturing, agriculture, and services. These are also reflected in the Department’s Food Innovation Centers, Mobile Food Processors, Metals and Engineering Innovation Centers, and Networked Services like OneLab, OneStore, and OneExpert.
Secretary de la Peña ended his remarks by saying that the Philippines’ different government agencies should adopt and practice the whole-of-government approach by collaborating with each other so as to avoid duplicating each other’s work. (DOST) -rir
