By Stephanie Sevillano
MANILA – The Philippines has entered into a partnership with South Korea’s TYM Corporation, a global manufacturer of agricultural equipment, to help modernize the country’s agricultural sector.
The Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) and TYM Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) establishing a framework for cooperation.
PHilMech Director IV Dionisio Alvindia described the agreement, which was signed on Oct. 1, as a key step in advancing mechanization in the country through training and technical collaboration.
“The knowledge that TYM Corporation will impart to PHilMech will pave the way for the agency to establish an academy that will level up the knowledge of Filipinos in farm mechanization and postharvest,” Alvindia said in a statement Thursday.
Under the MOU, PHilMech and TYM Corp. will set up the PHilMech Academy on Postharvest and Mechanization through the framework on “Advanced Technical Training and Strategic Collaboration for the Industrial Development of the Agricultural Sector in the Philippines.”
Over the next five years, TYM Corp. will develop training materials, deploy instructors, and deliver training sessions for PHilMech engineers.
Filipino trainees who demonstrate outstanding performance will be given the opportunity to train in South Korea to further enhance their technical expertise.
The program will be implemented by PHilMech with the oversight and support of FIT Corea Trading Phils., Inc., TYM’s local representative.
Trained PHilMech personnel are expected to pass on their knowledge to field technicians and farmer-beneficiaries under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF).
Alvindia expressed gratitude to TYM Corp. Director Hokyum Kim, saying the partnership will contribute greatly to agricultural modernization.
“The signing of this agreement between PHilMech and TYM Corp. is a major step in modernizing the country’s agriculture sector primarily through mechanization and other related technologies. And we thank Mr. Hokyum Kim for making this agreement possible,” he said.
Founded in 1951, TYM Corp. now operates in more than 40 countries worldwide. (PNA)
