A high-level conference on science and technology education will try to dissect the issues confronting the sector in the Philippines and in member-economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).
The confab, the 1st APEC High-Level Policy Dialogue on Science and Technology in Higher Education, will be held at the PICC on August 13 to 14.
The event, organized by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), is part of the country?s hosting of the APEC summit this year.
The dialogue is expected to gather at least 40 foreign delegates from APEC member-economies and an estimated 500 participants including university presidents, scientists, educators and researchers, senior academicians and industry leaders.
Earlier, the Philippines conducted a regional event on technology startups at part of the APEC activities in the country. The main APEC summit is slated in November.
At a press briefing on Friday, Aug. 7, DOST secretary Mario Montejo and CHED chairperson Patricia Licuanan both emphasized the need to pinpoint areas for improvement in the country?s S&T education.
?With higher education institutions widely acknowledged as significant contributors of scientific and technological breakthroughs in the 21st century, ?the Dialogue demonstrates the critical role of higher education as an important platform for the generation of new knowledge and the production of science and technology innovation, the producer of 21st century innovators, and the driver of innovations that propel inclusive regional growth,? stated Licuanan.
“Our commitment to higher education stems from the constant need to develop skilled, highly trained knowledge workers with graduate degrees, conducting research and development activities in the science and technology fields. Thus, our chances for boosting the country’s S&T base shall ultimately rest on the quality of our students and workforce,” added Montejo.
As host, the Philippines will have two presentations: first, on the theme of ?Ensuring Relevance, Utilization and Contribution of Products of S&T in Higher Education to Economic Development in the APEC Region in the context of Environment, Climate Change Preparedness and Disaster Mitigation and Resiliency? and second, on the theme of ?Technologies and S&T Concerns of the Future: Implications for Future Careers in the context of Smart Analytics and Engineering Innovations.?
Licuanan and Montejo will deliver the presentations.
The event is expected to result in the formulation of a ?Joint Declaration? that articulates various initiatives such as ?Cross Border Education & Inter-University Collaboration?; ?S&T Mobility Card: Talent Mobility for Scientists and Expert Researchers?; and ?Capacity Building through Twinning Programs (Joint and Double Programs for Ph.D. degrees in Science and Technology, Engineering, Agriculture and Marine Sciences and Fisheries).?
