President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has created the Philippine Council for Research and Development task force to strengthen the focus on research and development(RnD) and to align all related programs of various government agencies on research.
This is in line with the administration’s program thrust to create more livelihood opportunities for the Filipino people or improve their quality of life, would like to set in motion such programs for the next administration to follow or continue.
The task force is chaired by the President herself, with DOST Secretary as its vice chair. Council members include the Secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Agriculture, Department of Trade and Industry, the Commission on Higher Education, and representatives from the academic institutions.
The objective of the council is to assure that all output from research will really address a certain need or problem in the business sector, especially Micro-Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), which is providing livelihood to many this hard times. (PIA)