LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The earlier scheduled first higher education Summit on Academe-Industry-LGU Linkages for Coffee (dubbed as The Coffee Summit) will definitely push through on March 1-3, 2016 through a collaboration of the Cordillera Administrative Region Association of State Universities and Colleges (CARASUC) ,Commission on Higher Education (CHED), National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) and with the Benguet State University (BSU) as host.
The said summit will focus its theme, “Coffee Industry for Poverty Reduction and Inclusive Growth”, and aims to bring together coffee farmers, producers and entrepreneurs, national line agencies, LGUs, private sectors and from the SUCs in the country for their researches and on-going PPAs.
After the said summit, the 150-200 expected participants from the 112 SUCs in the country shall understand national/regional programs and promote partnerships and coordination towards a integrated coffee development programs, share best practices in coffee production, pricing and marketing, re-engage project partnerships among different key sectors and to highlight the role of coffee programs in poverty alleviation, climate change mitigation and sustainable development.
Best practices on coffee and coffee related PPAs and researches will be presented by LGUs of CAR, identified local coffee industries such as Ymandaya Coffee of Apayao, Kalinga Brew, Montaňosa Coffee of Benguet, Alamid coffee of Sagada and others from Ifugao and Abra.
Papers from the academe include those SUC coffee assisted researches and industries such as those of Cavite State University, Batangas State University and other SUCs who had been venturing into coffee.
In a meeting held last February 15, 2016, in Cable Café, Bontoc, Mt. Province, each of the six SUCs comprising CARASUC have committed to send 10 participants and two assisted farmers under the SUCs’ extension programs. Also, the core group from each SUC will coordinate with the Local Government Units (LGU) to identify and send two coffee farmer/entrepreneur/producers as participants in the workshop which will be held on the 3rd day, March 3, 2016.
The CARASUC marketing center will also be launched during the said summit aside from the exhibit of coffee and coffee related products, posters and papers and other related coffee instructional materials.
Meanwhile, CARASUC is conducting a survey to determine the status of coffee PPAs with the SUCs in the country through a questionnaire.
By JAYLORD A. AGPULDO