THE SAMAHAN ng Nagtataguyod ng Agham at Teknolohiya para sa Sambayanan (AGHAM) said the Philippines will continue to lose its best scientists unless it has national industries that accommodate their skills.
And the problem, as described by the activist organization of scientists, cannot be solved even by the recent increase in budget to P839 million for the science and technology community.
AGHAM national chairperson Giovanni Tapang said in a statement that the budget provided for scholarships and construction of scientific facilities is way below the standard set by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which is a two percent budget allocation from a country’s annual gross domestic product.
Tapang noted that even an increase in budget for the Department of Science and Technology would have little or no direct benefit to Filipinos. This is compounded by the fact that research materials by Filipino scientists are from companies that are owned and controlled by foreign entities.
Tapang also said that increasing the number of scholars would be useless unless they are assured of possible employment in local industries.
“One crucial factor that keeps our science and technology stunted is our dependence on imported goods and the export orientation of our industries which does not leave a place for a highly trained scientist to flourish,” Tapang said.
For example, investments in the mining industry in the Philippines are more on extraction of ores, instead of processing the ores to get into the raw materials. Tapang said the government should build downstream industries to support the larger mining companies in order to give more jobs to Filipino scientists.
“The government’s track of depending on foreign investments and exporting our agricultural products and raw materials is stunting the growth of local industries. These local industries could have benefited from the expertise of Filipino scientists and at the same time provided them with opportunities where they can exercise their knowledge and skills. It should comprehensively address this problem,” Tapang said.
October 1st, 2007 at 10:13 pm
Intelligent people are going out to practice their knowledge and skills abroad to make a decent living those who lacks this are left behind to serve in the senate and congress.
June 10th, 2007 at 8:22 am
It is a pity that the works of Filipino scientists never realy benefit their countrymen. Puro latak na lang ang nabibigay. Take the rice research institute, sobrang hi tech niya pero the country is importing rice that taste like paste. Nobody wants to manufacture anything here not because of shortage of brains or brawn, but because all the profits you rake in are just enough to pay for the taxes that politicians squander for their own follies.
June 9th, 2007 at 8:29 pm
Shake it to the left. Shake to the right.
Point to the east, and point to the west.
Sa Pinas, meron bang scientest?
Kung ang fire ay apoy,
ano naman ang water?
Palakpakan natin ang genius na waiter!
Kapag nagsilayas na ang mga AGHAM scientests,
I-recruit yung mga panalo sa wahwahwah at itbaluga contests.
June 9th, 2007 at 12:14 pm
Our Government patronizes and support sports heroes and even put headline in newspapers, but our brilliant and genuises that won recornizations abroad got a little good media mileage and from the government as well.
Its time for our govt. to support the needs and flourish our scientists.
June 9th, 2007 at 11:42 am
I only wish that our Government will realize the impact of being manipulated by some foreign entities and I hope Madam President Gloria Arroyo whom happens to be our chief economist will take a closer look of helping our Scientists of their aim to help also Philippine Economy. Just like Mr. Tapang said, why do we have to export only raw material if we can make it a finished product. by then, we employ more filipinos, earn more and show the world what is a Filipino Scientist made of.