Iligan City, Lanao del Norte - Academic and research institutions here in Mindanao are strengthening collaborations with the Department of Science and Technology (DoST) and other institutions to explore the full potential of biotechnology in this part of the country to generate more jobs and spur economic growth.

DoST Secretary Estrella Alabastro, in her keynote address during the First Mindanao Biotechnology Roundtable Discussion here at the Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT), reiterated the Department’s commitment in pursuit of job creation and economic wealth in Mindanao by means of technology transfer and commercialization.

Alabastro also highlighted the importance of public funding and cooperative research in doing research and development (R & D) work as well as the value of institutional linkages.

Alabastro said the roundtable discussions aim to explore the potential of biotechnology in Mindanao, with its vast agricultural lands and abundant natural resources, and the Philippines as a whole.

"Biotechnology could make a big contribution towards poverty alleviation and food security," Alabastro said.

"We must learn to bank on each other’s resources and strength to attain the competitive value of a national biotechnology enterprise," she added.

The two-day roundtable discussions is participated in by 16 academic and research institutes in Mindanao.

It aims to collaborate Mindanao’s home-grown scientists to establish a Mindanao biotechnology information network and also create a roadmap on biotechnology in Mindanao.

"It’s not just for business advantage but also for its social impacts to address diagnostic diseases, provision of clean water and better sanitation, among others," Alabastro said.

The Biotechnology sector has been identified by the national government as a potential export earner, aside from major export earning industries like electronics, autoparts, processed foods, coconut, and marine products.

The national government has already put up a Biotechnology cluster, headed by DoST Undersecretary for Science and Technology Services Fortunato de la Peña, to improve the country’s strong points in biotechnology and address problems concerning the biotechnology sector.

The Biotechnology cluster is the "blueprint" of the country’s action plan, including the crafting of export strategies.

Philippine Council for Advanced Science and Technology Research and Development (PCASTRD-DoST) division chief Dr. Virginia Novenario Enriquez said that among the priorities in the biotechnology sector include agribiotechnology, including diagnostic kits for animal and plant diseases; biofertilizers, vaccines for livestock, feed additives, and tissue culture such as in disease-free abaca and macapuno.

Another priority area is the bio-industry including health biotechnology which includes the production of banana, papaya and lagundi extracts.