The Network was organized through the sponsorship of DOST-PCASTRD (currenlty known as DOST-PCIEERD) and initially composed of the following culture collections: Philippine National Collection of Microorganisms, UPLB, College, Laguna; UP Culture Collection, Natural Sciences Research Institute, UP Diliman, Quezon City; Bacterial Germplasm Collection, International Rice Research Institute, College, Laguna; and Microbial Culture Collection, Museum of Natural History, UPLB, College, Laguna and hereby referred to as the Network.