CHED begins P3.4-B international research projects

MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has formally started the implementation of the Philippine-California Advanced Research Institutes (PCARI) project, which has received a budget of over P3.4 billion since 2013.

CHED Chairman Patricia Licuanan recently led the turn over of the memorandum and research funding agreements for the implementation of high-end research and development projects in partnership with the University of California in Berkeley (UCB).

The agreement covers an initial list of eight researches that will be implemented by project leaders from the UCB, the University of the Philippines and Ateneo de Manila University.

Included in the collaborative projects are studies on screening of Philippine terrestrial and marine organisms for anti-malaria properties, accessible detection of dengue, Philippine-University of California “collaboratory” for device innovation, and expansion of shared genomics core facility.

The agreement also covers funding for studies on resilient sensory swarms for smart energy, village base station, resilient cyber-physical societal scale systems, and cost-effective manufacturing using printing fabrication technologies.

CHED said the projects aim to enhance the research capacity of Filipino faculty-student researchers and address development priorities.

In addition to the projects, equipment will be provided for a Shared Genomics Laboratory in the Philippine Genomics Center and the Animal Surgical Laboratory at the UP College of Veterinary Medicine.

Earlier, Licuanan said PCARI would enhance the country’s academic and economic competitiveness.

“This unprecedented government initiative is a response to the disturbing reality that the Philippines is seriously lagging behind its neighbors in terms of having a sustainable university-based research infrastructure for technological innovation. For instance, it continues to trail behind China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand,” Licuanan said.

From an initial P1.763 billion in 2013, another P1.767 billion was given to CHED in 2014.

No budget was allotted for PCARI this year as no project was implemented, with Licuanan telling members of Congress that CHED can still use the budget allocations for 2013-2014 to implement the projects.