The Department of Science and Technology Region 1 (DOST Region 1), under the leadership of Regional Director Teresita A. Tabaog, with Assistant Regional Director for Field Operations Mr. Decth-1180 P. Libunao serving as the project lead, is preparing to bring the Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines (Project SARAi) closer to the farming communities of the Ilocos Region. While the establishment of the SARAi Regional Hub in Region 1 is still underway, the active participation of its technical team in recent trainings and workshops marks a crucial first step toward building the foundation for smart, data-driven agriculture in the area.
Project SARAi, which began in 2013 through the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) with support from DOST-PCAARRD, harnesses remote sensing, geographic information systems (GIS), crop models, and weather-based advisories to provide farmers and local governments with actionable information for resource management and climate adaptation. Now entering its expansion phase, SARAi is working closely with DOST regional offices to train personnel, transfer technologies, and eventually establish functional regional hubs that will serve as platforms for localized agricultural innovation.
As part of this national rollout, SARAi Team One of DOST Region 1 composed of Engr. Dana Bliezelle V. Hernaez (Co-Lead), Engr. Novilyne O. Obfan (Lead Researcher and GIS Expert), Ms. Jeisel O. Labatete (Crop Expert), Mr. Christian Dominic I. Casimiro (Capacity Development Lead), and Ms. Miriam A. Oliva (GIS Support) joined a series of trainings to deepen their technical expertise. The online component, held via Zoom on September 2–4, 2025, introduced the Community-Level SARAi-Enhanced Agricultural Monitoring System (CL-SEAMS) and provided orientation on GIS tools, including digitizing agricultural land and applying geospatial analysis for crop monitoring.
The sessions were followed by a hands-on training at DOST-PCAARRD in Los Baños, Laguna on September 9–10, 2025, where the Region 1 team practiced using Google Earth Engine for time-series data preparation, running scripts to compute the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) for crops, and managing Automatic Weather Station (AWS) data. They also gained practical skills in AWS installation, maintenance, and weather data visualization using the Weatherlink platform. A content management system under the SARAi Knowledge Portal was likewise introduced to streamline data and information sharing once the regional hubs are in place.
In preparation for hub establishment, DOST Region 1 also took part in the SARAi inception meeting on September 8, 2025 at PCAARRD, which gathered representatives from across the country to align project objectives, set deliverables, and strengthen collaboration between the Central Hub and the regional offices. The meeting highlighted the importance of tailoring SARAi technologies to local contexts while laying the groundwork for their integration into farming systems nationwide.
For Region 1, these trainings and consultations are more than just capacity-building, they are investments in the region’s agricultural future. With the leadership of Dr. Tabaog and ARD Libunao, and the commitment of its technical team, DOST Region 1 is positioning itself to play a central role in the eventual rollout of the SARAi Regional Hub. Once established, the hub will provide farmers and local governments with access to timely, science-based tools that can help boost yields, reduce risks, and make agriculture in the Ilocos region more resilient to climate change. (Christian Dominic I. Casimiro)