Prof. Dr. Gurbir Singh Bullar - PH

What made you decide to apply for a grant at the Leading House Asia?
Cotabato province located on the Island of Mindanao, was once hailed as the food basket of the Philippines. However, this region suffered from conflict and internal displacement in the past several decades, dramatically affecting the livelihoods of local people, who mostly depend on farming. The gravity of the situation is reflected by the poverty incidence that stands highest in North Cotabato at 41.4 percent and much higher in ethnic minorities at 72.1 percent, versus the national average of 21.6 percent.
The brutal armed conflict was largely resolved with the signing of a framework agreement for establishment of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2014, followed by a legally binding plebiscite in 2019. An interim government was established, and the administrative transition of different municipalities and villages (Barangays) was foreseen to be completed by 2022. This process was, however, severely hampered by the Covid-19 pandemic. Additionally, as the health sector took priority during pandemic times, the farming and rural development sectors got deprived of already scarce financial resources. This further exacerbates the plight of underprivileged people in this region.

How did you secure a research partner?
In 2019, a field assessment carried out in the region, found that slopy farms on largely hilly terrain were severely eroded. These slopes and valleys rich in diverse vegetation were deforested for the cultivation of newly introduced yellow maize as monoculture cash crop. Owing to repeated tillage operations and soil exposure the fields experienced extreme soil erosion. To remodify the situation, a public-private partnership (PPP) was initiated, with the support of a subsidy from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency. The field assessment of 2019 offered the first opportunity of contact between the scientists of the Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH-HAFL) and the University of Southern Mindanao (USM) and thereafter, both the institutes formalized the collaboration through the PPP consortium.
Building on this collaboration, the two institutes once again joined forces to address the crucial aspects of ‘research and outreach’ with the support of this "opportunity grant" from the Leading House Asia (LH Asia) ETH Zurich.

How would you describe your experience of the program?
This collaboration has offered many valuable experiences while engaging with various stakeholders as well as with regard to the aspects of policy, administration and institutional exchange. While working with the local farmers it is amazing to see the farmer community comprising of different ethnic and religious groups united by their common needs and challenges of farming. Their keenness for learning and commitment to improve their farming practices serves as a personal motivation to continue this work.
Since the security situation in the region still remains sensitive, foreign researchers are always accompanied by security personnel during the field visits. Looking at the photographs after a field workshop, my local collaborators told me that some of the participating farmers were former combatants. It was amazing to see that some of the most humble and polite old men were among them.

What role did the Leading House Asia play in the program?
The public-private partnership (PPP) mentioned above provides support for reforestation of the slopes with Banana and Coconut based diversified production system. However, the aspects of research and outreach are not covered by the scope of the ppp project. This ‘opportunity grant’ from the Leading House Asia (LH Asia) ETH Zurich offered us opportunity to quantify the extent of soil degradation and contamination caused by the unsustainable farming practices and to highlight the potential of conservation by sustainable agroecosystem management.

What were the impacts you made through the project/partners/individual?
We conducted field study to assess the impact of maize monoculture and agroforestry systems on soil erosion and on the contamination of natural resources. During this process we could build capacities of a young researcher in the Philippines. We conducted a public outreach event in which the results and further information on the project was shared with different stakeholders including policy makers, academia, farmers and civil society. During this event a policy cum media brief was also released. Besides sharing the scientific information with the policy relevant stakeholders, this event also helped to highlight the Swiss institutional contribution to development cooperation in the Philippines.

Testimonial: what were your personal experiences/thoughts on the bilateral cooperation experience?
I find this bilateral cooperation program of the LH Asia very valuable to pursue important initiatives in development cooperation. Moreover, the focus of the ‘opportunity grants’ on the globally important geo-political or environmental events is appreciable. It helps to address the developmental challenges in a specific context at a crucial time when a particular challenge has high priority. Besides addressing the developmental issues, such cooperations have significant learning value for participating researchers via memorable cross -cultural experiences. I, on behalf of the consortium team, express my heart felt gratitude to the LH Asia and SERI.