The first cohort of the Development Entrepreneurship Mentoring program included employees of DOST-PCAARRD (Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development). The mentees used their experience to strengthen the policy advocacy capabilities of their organization.

Encouraged by these results, PCAARRD and its supporter, ACIAR (Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research), proposed extending the Development Entrepreneurship training to researchers who are implementing the policy advocacy projects supported by DOST-PCAARRD. The Asia Foundation, through the Coalitions for Change partnership with the Australian Embassy in the Philippines, readily agreed to conduct a special Introduction to Development Entrepreneurship, and a customized online course, in February 2023.

This collaboration is spearheaded on ACIAR’s side by Hazel Aniceto, who leads ACIAR’s country team in the Philippines.