BLESSED TRINITY COLLEGE
Talibon, Bohol
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY
Government Policies on Science and Technology
The Philippine government introduced and implemented several programs,
projects, and policies to boost the area of science and technology. The goal is to prepare
the whole country and its people to meet the demands of a technologically driven world
and capacitate the people to live in a world driven by science.
In response to the ASEAN 2015 Agenda, the government, particularly the
Department of Science and Technology (DOST), has sought the expertise of the National
Research Council of the Philippines (NCRP) to consult various sectors in the society to
study how the Philippines can prepare itself in meeting the ASEAN 2015 Goals. As a
result of the consultation, the NCRP is expected to recommend policies and programs
that will improve the competitiveness of the Philippines in the ASEAN Region.
The NCRP clustered these policies into four namely:
1. Social Sciences, Humanities, Education, International Policies and Governance
a. Integrating ASEAN awareness in basic education without adding to the
curriculum
b. Emphasizing teaching in the mother tongue
c. Developing school infrastructure and providing for ICT broadband
d. Local food security
2. Physics, Engineering and Industrial Research, Earth and Space Sciences, and
Mathematics
a. Emphasizing degrees, licenses, and employment opportunities
b. Outright grants for peer monitoring
c. Review of RA 9184
d. Harnessing science and technology as an independent mover of
development
3. Medical, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences
a. Ensuring compliance of drug-manufacturing firms with ASEAN-harmonized
standards by full implementation of the Food and Drug Administration
b. Creating an education council dedicated to standardization of
pharmaceutical services and care
c. Empowering food and drug agencies to conduct evidence-based research
as pool of information
d. Allocating two percent of the GDP to research
e. Legislating a law supporting human genome projects
4. Biological Sciences, Agriculture, and Forestry
a. Protecting and conserving biodiversity by full implementation of existing
laws
b. Use of biosafety and standard model by ASEAN countries
c. Promoting indigenous knowledge systems and indigenous people’s
conservation
d. Formulation of common food and safety standards
There are also other existing programs supported by the Philippine government
through the DOST. Some of these projects are the following:
a. Providing funds for basic research and patents related to science and
technology. The government funds basic and applied researches. Funding of
these research and projects are also from the Overseas Development Aid
(ODA) from different countries.
b. Providing scholarships for undergraduate and graduate studies of students in
the field of science and technology.
c. Establishing more branches of the Philippine Science High School System for
training young Filipinos in the field of science and technology
d. Creating science and technology parks to encourage academe and industry
partnerships.
e. Balik Scientist Program to encourage Filipino scientists abroad to come home
and work in the Philippines or conduct research and projects in collaboration
with Philippine-based scientists.
f. Developing science and technology parks in academic campuses to encourage
academe and industry partnerships.
g. The establishment of the National Science Complex and National Engineering
Complex within the University of the Philippines campus in Diliman.
The Philippine-American Academy of Science and Engineering (PAASE, 2008)
identified several capacity-building programs such as:
a. Establishment of national centers of excellence
b. Manpower and institutional development programs, such as the Engineering and
Science Education Program (ESEP) to produce more PhD graduates in science
and engineering
c. Establishment of regional centers to support specific industries that will lead the
country in different research and development areas
d. Establishment of science and technology business centers to assist, advise, and
incubate technopreneurship ventures
e. Strengthen science education at an early stage through the Philippine Science
High School system
In the field of education, several science-related programs and projects were created
to develop the scientific literacy of the country. Special science classes were organized
and special science elementary schools were established in different regions. Aside from
these, science and mathematics in basic education were continuously improved. The
current Kto12 education program included Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics (STEM) as one of its major tracks in the senior high school program to
encourage more students to enroll in science-related fields in college.
Lately, the Commission on Higher Education launched its Philippine-California
Advanced Research Institutes (PICARI) Project to allow several higher education
institutions in the Philippines and some US-based laboratories, research institutes, and
universities to work on research and projects related to science, agriculture, engineering,
health, and technology. This project is hoped to strengthen the STEM competitiveness of
the country.
Famous Filipinos in the Field of Science
School science is filled with names of foreign scientists: Einstein, Galileo Galilei,
Newton, Faraday, Darwin and many other Western scientists. We rarely hear of Filipino
scientists being discussed in science classes. The following are the 10 identified
outstanding Filipino scientists who have made significant contributions in Philippine
science. These scientists are also famous abroad especially in different science
disciplines.
These Filipino scientists are:
1. Ramon Cabanos Barba – for his outstanding research on tissue culture in
Philippine mangoes
2. Josefino Cacas Comiso – for his works on observing the characteristics of
Antarctica by using satellite images
3. Jose Bejar Cruz Jr. – known internationally in the field of electrical engineering;
was elected as officer of the famous Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineering
4. Lourdes Jansuy Cruz – notable for her research on sea snail venom
5. Fabian Millar Dayrit – for his research on herbal medicine
6. Rafael Dineros Guerrero III – for his research on tilapia culture
7. Enrique Mapua Ostrea Jr. – for inventing the meconium drugs testing
8. Lilian Formalejo Patena – for doing research on plant biotechnology
9. Mari-Jo Panganiban Ruiz – for being an outstanding educator and graph theorist
10. Gregory Ligot Tangonan – for his research in the field of communications
technology
There are other outstanding Filipino scientists who are recognized here and abroad
for their outstanding contributions in science:
1. Caesar A. Saloma – an internationally renowned physicist
2. Edgardo Gomez – famous scientist in marine science
3. William Padolina – chemistry and president of National Academy of Science and
Technology (NAST) – Philippines
4. Angel Alcala – marine science
Many Filipino scientists, whether they are in the country or abroad, always excel in
their job. The Filipino spirit in their souls has never faded. They make ordinary things in
an extraordinary way. They are always at par with other scientists in spite of the limited
facilities we have here in the country.
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Exercise:
1. What can you say about the implementation of some science and technology
policies and projects in the country?
2. Identify one existing law related to science and technology in the Philippines from
the year 2000.
3. Choose three Filipino Scientists give their contributions in the field of science.