Implementing agencies of the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund-Rice Extension Services Program (RCEF-RESP) convened for a convergence workshop to discuss plans of activities for the new normal.
The workshop served as an avenue for each agency to share updates on the conducted RCEF-RESP activities in the past months and how they dealt with the restraints of the lockdown measures. It also presented an opportunity to synchronize RESP approaches and activities for a more efficient implementation in the field.
Key officials and representatives from the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI), Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) were present in the online workshop.
"This sort of meeting should be conducted regularly for us to harmonize our plans for RCEF-RESP and to fast-track our activities moving forward, given our current situation of the new normal," said Lina Sarmiento, Deputy Director-General of TESDA.
Other topics discussed during the workshop include updates on the RCEF Farmer Field Schools (FFS) by PhilRice, mechanization training programs by PHilMech, RCEF-RESP baseline survey results by ATI, provincial targets of FFS and training sessions of TESDA, and status of physical and financial reports of each agency.
Each agency also shared how they will conduct their respective monitoring and evaluation activities. ATI Officer-in-Charge Assistant Director Rosana Mula stressed the importance of this aspect for the continuous improvement of program implementation.
"I look forward to a harmonized monitoring and evaluation scheme among all agencies, on which we should base our targets and activities moving forward. We can have a separate meeting for this to finalize the details and have a consolidated output," Mula said.
The RCEF-RESP Convergence Workshop was conducted on June 30 via Webex online meeting.
For more details on RCEF and to see the latest updates from the regions, follow the ATI’s Facebook page (@atiinteractive) or text the Farmers’ Contact Center at 0920-9462464.