IIA Projects

RAISE Plus Biotechnology

Rural and Agricultural Incomes with a Sustainable Environment (RAISE Plus)

Short-Term Technical Assistance (STTA) in Biotechnology is a three-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). RAISE Plus services are provided by a consortium of partners consisting of:

  • Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI)
  • Michigan State University (MSU)
  • Agriculture and Biotechnology Strategies (AGBIOS)
  • Donald Danforth Plant Science Center

The purpose of this project is to complement the longer-term biotechnology development efforts with short-term technical assistance in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. The scope of activities covered by this project reflect the need for rapid and targeted technical assistance to address the requests of developing country governments, as well as providing a mechanism to provide technical leadership and support to other USAID units and US government agencies. Examples of these potential activities include:

  • Bioengineered Cotton in Africa
  • Biosafety Policy and Regulatory Assistance
  • Technical Conferences (primarily in Asia)
  • Technical Assistance to Food Aid Recipient Countries
  • Trade Capacity Building
  • Study Tours

In January 2006, MSU and DAI provided logistical support for the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Conference on Biosafety Options (Manila, Philippines).

In collaboration with the Department of Agriculture of the Republic of the Philippines and the U.S. Agency for International Development, APEC held the Conference on Biosafety Policy Options in Manila in January 2006. The primary target audience of the conference, which was co-sponsored by the economies of the USA, Philippines, Vietnam, Peru and Canada, included regulators, government policy makers and experts in the areas of agriculture, trade, environment, economics and foreign affairs. The conference focused on exploring policy options for biosafety regulation in the APEC region. The theme of the conference reflected one of the priorities identified in the APEC High Level Policy Dialogue on Agricultural Biotechnology (HLPDAB). Among the topics that were covered were:

  • The comparison of economies obligations under the WTO and the Cartagena Protocol.
  • Impact of regulation on trade flow in the APEC region.
  • Differing impacts and implications for importing and exporting countries.
  • Biosafety regulation and socioeconomic considerations.
  • Regional initiatives for biosafety compliance.
  • Impact of biosafety regulation on public/private research in agricultural biotechnology.
  • Economy experiences of biosafety policy development and implementation.
The specific aims of the conference were to give participants a clearer understanding of the breadth of sectoral considerations embedded in biosafety policy, and to increase their understanding of the implications and options for agricultural biotechnology regulation in different sectors of government. In the longer term, it is hoped that, based on this increased understanding and sharing of experiences, APEC economies will be able to successfully meet the requirements of international agreements, thus strengthening their agricultural biotechnology sectors.