Thirty Southeast Asian nationals from Cambodia (3), Indonesia (2), Malaysia (1), Philippines (11), Taiwan (6), Thailand (3), and Vietnam (4) completed the agricultural biotechnology training-workshop held on 31 August - 11 September 2009 at the Center for Biotechnology of the National Taiwan University, Taipei City, Taiwan.

The participants were mostly research professors from the academe, researchers and research managers from national R&D agencies, and regulators from agricultural government institutions.

The training-workshop primarily aimed to improve agricultural biotechnology manpower in the Southeast Asian countries and is also envisioned to pave the way for the development and enhancement of the biotechnology industry in respective countries. Further, this capacity-building initiative allowed for the creation of cooperation and partnership in agricultural biotechnology among countries in the region.

In general, the program integrated trainings on basic technologies and strategies for industry development. It consisted of lectures, laboratory exercises and study visits to laboratory facilities, research stations and private biotech companies. Biotechnological topics that were discussed include cloning tools, transformation, protein expression systems, molecular detection of plant pathogens, transgenic fish and aquaculture applications, molecular genetic markers and marker-assisted breeding and genetic transformation of plants and animals. Case studies on commercialization of agricultural biotechnologies, technology transfer and GM product development, and biotechnological interventions for improving crop production and protection were tackled in the course lectures.

Likewise, participants gained knowledge and insights on the strengths of Taiwan and established network with other agencies within their own country and Southeast Asia. All of them expressed the need for future collaboration and were looking forward for continuous efforts to strengthen the agri-biotech capacity in the region.

Several institutions played key roles in organizing this training-workshop. These were the College of Bioresources and Agriculture of the National Taiwan University (NTU-CBA), the Center for Biotechnology of the National Taiwan University (NTU-CBT), the Food and Fertilizer Technology Center for the Asian and Pacific Region (FFTC/ASPAC), and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). It was also supported by the National Science Council (NSC), Executive Yuan; Council of Agriculture (COA), Executive Yuan; and the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT).

(Jenny A. Panopio, SEARCA BIC).