Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — Philippine Ambassador Ezzedin Tago expressed his and the Philippines government's happiness at Manila being picked as the host of the AGFUND International Prize for 2010. “We are very proud that AGFUND will hold its awarding ceremony in Manila this February 27, especially since one of the winning projects to be given recognition is the Philippine entry, the Open Academy for Philippine Agriculture which was implemented under the auspices of the Philippine Rice Research Institute,” he said. The project won for the third Category Prize (for government participation). Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz, President of the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND), had announced that Manila will be the venue for this year's ceremony. The event will honor winners of the projects that competed in 2010 under the theme “Development of Remote and Rural Communities through Information Technology and Communication.” The Manila event is expected to be attended by guests from a number of countries like Oman, Bahrain, United Kingdom, Nigeria, Uruguay, Egypt, Israel, US, Sierra Leone, Colombia, Uganda, Russian Federation, France, Australia, South Africa, India, Nepal, Lebanon, Sudan, and Saudi Arabia. Manila will also host the 14th meeting of AGFUND Prize Committee, which will approve the winners of the Prize in the field of “food security for the poor” and select the Prize subject for the year 2013. Previous cities that have hosted the AGFUND Prize award events include Cape Town, Warsaw, Buenos Aires, Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur, and New Delhi. The Philippine government welcomed the event to be held in Manila and commended Prince Talal's developmental and humanitarian efforts through various institutions such as AGFUND. The AGFUND International Prize is regarded as an extension of AGFUND's approach to focus on human development. Since its inception in 1999, it has received a total of 1,062 projects from 130 countries and launched 25 subjects covering a variety of fields such as poverty alleviation, water, environment, rural development, health, education, training, women and child development, youth empowerment, technology, and food security. The Prize has since honored 42 projects as being most innovative and pioneering. The Open Academy for Philippine Agriculture, which will be honored during the ceremony, is a network of institutions that provides education, training, and communication in agriculture, making information more accessible for those who need it. The Open Academy aims to empower the Philippine Agriculture sector and the agriculture extension system through information and communication technologies.
