ANGARA WELCOMES NEW AGRICULTURISTS

Senator Edgardo J. Angara welcomed the newly-licensed agriculturists of the Philippines. The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) handed out the Certificates of Registration and Professional Identification Cards yesterday to the 972 passers of the 2010 Agriculturist Licensure Exams.

The exams were taken in early September by a total of 2689 examinees in the cities of Manila, Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Legazpi, Lucena, Tacloban, Tuguegarao and Zamboanga. Results were posted near the end of last month but the passers had until yesterday to claim their certificate and ID.

"Our new licensed agriculturists bring fresh hope to our struggling agricultural system. They have quite a big burden to carry, but I believe that these young, bright minds are just what we need right now," said Angara, who is a former secretary of the Department of Agriculture.

Angara hopes to supplement the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act or AFMA--which prescribed a comprehensive set of policies and programs that aim to jumpstart agriculture and fisheries modernization through R&D, irrigation, farmer's access to financing, raw materials and distribution, information and marketing support service--with the passage of the Agriculture and Fisheries Extension Bill. This bill pushes for more Research and Development (R&D) geared towards the growth of the Agriculture and Fisheries industry.

"Agricultural R&D must be given attention. The government must also find ways to enable the farmers to access and command of market information through technology," Angara stated.

Angara further explains that a country's management of its agriculture knowledge through its extension services is crucial to agriculture growth and development. Knowledge at the hands of the producers empowers and gives them the competitive edge.

"That is where the new breed of agriculturists come in, as we now see the need for technology-savvy leaders to fill our R&D institutions," Angara said.