A program will help develop the agriculture, aquatic, and natural resources (AANR) sector through bridging and strengthening science and policy-making. The program, called PoliSiyensya, is an initiative of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD).
PoliSiyensya was launched on October 26, 2021 via Facebook Live in the DOST-PCAARRD Facebook page.
“Responding to the need for a more aggressive policy advocacy, we are launching PoliSiyensya, an umbrella program integrating our Policy Analysis and Advocacy initiatives,” said DOST-PCAARRD Executive Director Reynaldo V. Ebora. “Through PoliSiyensya, we aim to advance more science-informed and foresight-driven policy development. Using the wealth of knowledge generated from R&D, we will intensify our efforts in advocating science-based policy reforms.”
Aside from leveraging R&D outputs in the development of policies, Dr. Ebora also said that the voice of the science community will be an important factor in decision and policy-making not only in the AANR sector but also in other science, technology, and innovation policy concerns.
The program will have nine components: environment scanning, policy advisory, policy research, policy advocacy, information management, publications, promotion and coalition building, foresight and strategic insights, and capacity building.
Environment scanning includes systematic scanning of literature and news updates and engagements with other key agencies/actors to capture findings from other policy studies, current events, and the latest pronouncements. Meanwhile, policy advisory will mainly provide comments and recommendations on legislative documents and other policy documents.
Policy research will aim to investigate a policy problem affecting the AANR industries, assess different policy options, and recommend optimal policy solutions. Policy advocacy, on the other hand, will aim to put forward evidence-based policy reforms, particularly on recommendations provided to Congress and other key institutions for policy formulation.
The information management component aims to capture all policy outputs and implications as well as package insights and information for different audiences. Likewise, the publications component will compile insights from the program portfolio for reporting, planning, and advocating policies.
Promotion and coalition building will promote the DOST-PCAARRD policy portfolio and enjoin the current network to be part of a strong coalition. Foresight and strategic insights component will seek to establish a foresight culture in the Council and apply foresight to achieve anticipatory governance, science, technology, and innovation (STI) policymaking, and planning. Lastly, the capacity building component will ensure that the regional consortia and member agencies are trained and mentored on policy analysis and advocacy.
“Through PoliSiyensya, DOST and PCAARRD, together with our partners, will champion science and evidence-based formulation of optimal policies for a more responsive and inclusive science and technology development,” concluded Dr. Ebora.