The country needs to create a National Biotechnology Roadmap that will ensure a clear and definite strategy towards successful biotechnology programs.

According to Dr. Benigno Peczon, former president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Biotechnology Coalition of the Philippines (BCP), the country has mixed signals on biotechnology.

"Not only is the Philippine ship rudderless, it has oarsmen pulling in different directions. Moreover, it clearly has but little steam," he said.

Peczon said the country needs to get its act together to ensure that it will not continue to trail behind other Asian countries now gaining economic advantage due to biotechnology advancements.

He said there is a need to lay the groundwork through continuous information dissemination of the benefits of biotechnology and identification of biotechnology niches.

Moreover, he added, there is a need to acquire technologies beneficial for biotech research and development (R & D) and create an attractive biotech business environment through a good investment climate, coherent regulatory process, intellectual property rights, sufficient manpower, and necessary infrastructures.

"The country can craft a coherent biotechnology roadmap to make possible the objectives embodied in the Philippine National Policy Statement on Modern Biotechnology. With cooperation and careful tracking of benchmarks, we just might be able to implement biotech projects well enough to do ourselves proud," Peczon said.

The country used to lead in the biotechnology sector, having been the first to establish the National Institutes of Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology in 1979 (renamed National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology or UP Biotech in 1995).

However, the country still has not developed its own modern and health biotechnology products until now, said Peczon.

Despite this, the nation leads in the development and approval of biotech crops in Southeast Asia. Filipino agro-biotechnologists are currently developing Bt eggplant, papaya ringspot virus resistant (PRSVR) papaya, and delayed ripening papaya. Bt corn is now commercialized while other biotech projects are already in the pipeline.

In China, a National Biotechnology Center for Development was established in 1983 but it was in 1997 or after 14 years where it exhibited rapid growth. India established their Biotechnology Department in 1986 and has since then gradually progressed with a target of having 50 biotech centers of excellence by 2012.

Vietnam is also catching up as it has recently approved a Biotechnology Plan by setting up R & D centers by 2010 and a manpower target of 8,000 graduates by 2010 and 12,000 between 2011 and 2015.