The Ateneo de Manila University and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) recently inked an agreement that will establish greater collaboration between the two parties to further enhance the research capability of the latter.
With the agreement, the BSP and the Ateneo, through the Department of Economics and the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development, can now undertake research independently, jointly, or collaboratively with the aim to help inform policy formulation and decisions.
“Central banks have been supporting research in the academia and other research institutions in many ways. The BSP, in particular, has always attached great value to interactions with the academe and with other research institutions,” BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said.
Researchers from the Ateneo will be designated as Visiting Research Economists (VREs) while conducting their study. At least four members of the Economics Department Faculty will be VREs at the BSP, and together with economists at the Central Bank and a graduate student from the Ateneo, research can be undertaken in various fields such as financial sector governance, banking systems, competition, and financial inclusion.
“Through the publications and conferences that we expect to result from the research, we hope to educate and influence even more academics, researchers, and practitioners in the fields of finance and economics, thus leading to a more robust economic system for our country and better lives for our fellow Filipinos,” Fr. Roberto Yap, SJ, President of the Ateneo de Manila University said.
Aside from the Ateneo, the BSP also signed an agreement with the University of the Philippines – Los Baños (UPLB) to foster collaboration in the field of research.
“Through this Memorandum of Understanding on research collaboration with UP Los Baños and with the Ateneo de Manila University, the BSP affirms the importance of collaboration and intellectual exchange in strengthening research,” Gov. Diokno said. “These MOUs serve as means to promote collaborative research efforts between BSP researchers and researchers at UPLB and Ateneo. Thus, we reinforce our joint commitment to increase the capacity of our institutions in conducting objective, rigorous and policy-relevant research.”
