RRDIC-X upskills 72 proposal preparers to secure innovation fund

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—The Regional Research, Development, and Innovation Committee—X (RRDIC—X) organized a writeshop on September 03-04, 2024, at N Hotel, Cagayan De Oro City, to capacitate 72 proposal preparers in crafting effective proposals for innovation projects in Northern Mindanao.

The goal of the workshop is to increase the number of project proposals from Region 10 that will receive grants from the National Innovation Fund. The RRDIC-X invited seasoned innovators to train the 72 participants from the state universities and colleges, national government agencies, and local government units.

In the past, Northern Mindanao has only secured one innovation project every year. The funded projects include establishing the Farmers Information and Technology Services (FITS) Center Innovation Program in Camiguin in 2022 and the Fabrication Laboratory for Hull Research at the University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines (USTP) in 2023.

Innovation is the cornerstone of progress. The Philippine Innovation Act recognizes innovation as “the creation, development, and commercialization of new or improved products, processes, or services that significantly benefit the economy and society.” said Director Ratilla in her opening message.

Ms. Queritess Q. Queja, Executive Director of the Oro Chamber of Commerce, emphasized user-centric design (UCD) as a template for developing effective innovations. UCD means that designers set out to create a product that reflects the user’s needs and preferences.

A winning proposal is an innovation that solves the market gaps. “We have to make sure that our innovations that we intend to propose should have a market. It should be market-driven, meaning to say, that at the end of the day, someone is going to use the output of our proposal,” said OIC Regional Director Ruel B. Paclipan.

Dr. Jinky B. Bornales, the project leader of Mindanao State University—Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT) ‘s ILIGANICE, was invited as the guest trainer for the second day of the write shop, emphasizing the technical writing guidelines for writing a proposal.

National Economic and Development Authority—10 Regional Director Mylah Faye Aurora B. Cariño emphasized the importance of the write-shop message in her closing message: “What we really wanted out of this training is that we would be able to come up with proposals that would drive regional development.”

The DOST 10, DTI – 10, and NEDA – 10 co-organized the two-day workshop (Joshua Robin/DOST 10).

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