The Training for Development (T4D) Privacy Statement aims to inform you of the ways the application system collects, uses, processes, secures information, and disposes the information you provide for applying for the SEARCA training programs, and the SEARCA training alumni database.
This privacy statement covers the disclosure, use, processing, security and disposal of information that will be collected every time an individual inputs or updates information to the T4D Information System (T4DIS).
SEARCA collects and uses information and documents voluntarily provided by applicants as a matter of necessity in evaluating applications and considering applicants for training grants. Information and supporting documents that SEARCA collects vary depending on the training or grants program. All information provided by the applicants will be kept confidential.
Personal information such as nationality are collected to assess if the applicants meet the general eligibility criteria of the SEARCA training grant such as:
Nationals of the regular member countries of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), namely: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam
Additional identifiable personal information such as full name, mailing address, contact number, and email address allows SEARCA to contact the applicant to confirm receipt of information, request additional information, and other forms of communication necessary to ensure completeness of requirements, evaluation, and awarding process. An updated Curriculum Vitae shall also be requested from the applicant.
The applicants are asked to provide their academic background (Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD degree) for SEARCA to evaluate the relevance of the previous field of study to the training program. This would guarantee that the applicant has the necessary background to pursue and complete the program.
The applicants are asked to provide their employment history such as position, name of institution/employer, duties and responsibilities, and year(s) of service. These information are used to determine their potential contribution to their institution and the Southeast Asian region in general upon their completion of the training program. A recommendation or nomination letter from the institution may be asked to vouch for the applicants’ good moral character, and academic and professional capabilities.
The training applicants will be able to view, change, update, and remove some of their information associated with their application upon request at trainingsearca.org.
Withdrawal of application may be requested through training@searca.org, and SEARCA will delete the whole application submission. Training applicants have the right to withdraw their application at any time during the application, evaluation, and awarding process. This will mean that those who withdraw their application will no longer be considered for evaluation and awarding of grants.
SEARCA training programs may require a re-entry action plan as part of the application and completion of any program. Information will be requested about your institution, such as current challenges and opportunities, the name and contact information of the applicant’s supervisor, and proposed innovations or application of learning after the training program.
For the alumni database, updates on the progress, challenges encountered, and success stories will be requested as a means for evaluating the outcomes and impact of SEARCA’s capacity-building programs. Training alumni may be requested to provide further information and materials for documentation, marketing, and publicity purposes of SEARCA’s training programs.
T4DU will not transfer, share, and disclose your personal data to another institution unless required by the law or with your explicit consent. Your personal data is treated as confidential and is not sold, traded, or otherwise transferred to third parties without your consent, except as set forth in this Privacy Statement or as required by law.
Upon your explicit consent, T4DU ensures not to transfer, share, and disclose your personal data unless partner institution/s and other third-parties have a contractual privacy agreement with SEARCA that specifies their respective data privacy regulation and their compliance with the DPA of 2012 and cross-border agreement if the partner institution is located outside the Philippines.
SEARCA collects, stores, and processes information and documents voluntarily provided in the T4DIS only for the purpose for which it was collected.
Applicants may save a draft of their applications. However, any data in drafted applications that remain unfinalized and unsubmitted by the specified deadline will be removed from our database.
Information provided by applicants will be accessible to the evaluator/s for the purpose of assessing the credentials of the applicants and generating a sound recommendation on the acceptance to the training program and/or awarding or rejection of grants. Recommendation for grant awards is made by the Training for Development Unit-Education and Collective Learning Department under the Office of the Deputy Director for Programs (ODDP) of SEARCA.
Information provided by applicants who were not accepted to the training program and/or awarded a grant shall be deleted from the T4DIS after six months since rejection/unsuccessful application letters have been sent.
Information provided by the accepted training participants during their application shall be retained in the system for the duration of the program and shall be deleted five years after the conclusion of the program.
SEARCA takes technical and organizational measures to protect your information against accidental or unlawful destruction or accidental loss, alteration, unauthorized disclosure or access. We employ several physical and electronic safeguards to keep your information safe. SEARCA uses browser encryption, store data on servers in secure facilities, and implement systematic processes and procedures for securing and storing data. Furthermore, we conduct regular monitoring of access logs and continuously train our employees on cybersecurity. We likewise limit access to your personal information to only those with authorized access who need to know the information in order to perform their jobs and duties.
However, no method of transmission over the Internet, and no means of electronic or physical storage, is absolutely secure, and thus we cannot ensure or warrant the security of that information.
For complaints, concerns, and questions regarding the information disclosed in the Training for Development Information System (T4DIS), the Data Protection Officer may be reached at:
DATA PROTECTION OFFICER
Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA)
College, Los Baños, Laguna 4031, Philippines
Email address: DPO@searca.org
T: (+63-49) 536-2290 / (+63-2) 8657-1300 to 1302
Training applicants and alumni may exercise their rights as stated in the Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 10173 known as the “Data Privacy Act of 2012” stipulated in VIII. Rights of Data Subjects, Section 3. Rights of the Data Subject. You may access the full details of your rights as well the SEARCA’s Data Privacy Statement through this LINK.
I consent and authorize SEARCA to use all the information I will provide in the T4DIS for the purpose of:
I understand that SEARCA may disclose my information to the following external parties:
I understand that failure to provide my consent to the collection, use, processing, and disclosure of my information may restrict SEARCA in evaluating my application for a grant and acceptance to the training program.
I consent to the terms stipulated in this privacy statement.
