No. 21 March 2017 Kyungpook National University IATC NEWS LETTER
IATC NEWS LETTER Opening Ceremony of Follow-up Seminar on Sustainable Agriculture Development (SAD)
Director's remarks Contents Director s Remarks Director s Remark 03 IATC Training News 2016 NEI's Korea Training Program Understanding Daegu Agriculture Program for International Students Follow-up Seminar on Sustainable Agriculture Development (SAD) Special Interview 04 05 11 14 17 It has always been my great pleasure and honor to serve the International Agricultural Training Center (IATC). Recollecting the past memories my staffs and I had with the delegates from Asian and African countries makes me happy and puts a smile on my face, because we made good friends and shared our sincere passion for developing better agricultural setups in their countries with the help of the training programs. With this news letter, we are hoping to establish closer networks with the delegates to maintain the friendship and support them with technical assistants in order to solve the challenges they are meeting in the field. Let s keep in touch! We are hoping to see you again either here at Kyunpook National University or in your home countries. Prof. Jinkyu Lim, Ph.D. 02 03
IATC training news 2016 NEI s Korea Training Program IATC Self-Sustainable Soy Industry Development Training in Korea Training ATC News Opening Ceremony 04 05
IATC training news Celebrating opening of the NEI s Korea Training Program Trainees participating in the Course IATC(International Agricultural Training Center) held a training program for soybean industry development. IATC has been conducting Training course for sustainable soybean industry development every summer since 2014 up to 2016, for senior civil servants and authorities of the agricultural sector from Afghanistan. Visit to Rural Development Administration in Jeonju Program This training program has been held under multilateral cooperation with Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, World Food Programme(WFP) which is a UN-affiliated agency, and Afghan international relief organization NEI. Moreover, NEI and International Agricultural Training Center signed a MOU on 4 th November, 2015. During the training that was carried out from 8 th to 13 th August, 2016, Mr. Mir Amanuddin Haidary, Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Technical Affairs and other relevant public officials, representative of soybean farmers, local officials of World Food Programme(WFP) and NEI have participated. The training program was composed of the content: Virtues of soybeans that can provide substantial help to the development of agriculture in Afghanistan. 06 07
A step forward to his dream for Afghanistan s better agriculture My favorite Korean dishes are soy sprout, Kimchi, tofu, and there is no similarity between Afghan and Korean food, because our preparation methods and composition are different from Korean food. Afghan food is mostly oily. Mirwai Ghani MSc Researh Scholar Genetics and Plant Breeding Lab, Kyungpook National University 3. Please tell us an episode or any shocking experience from the cultural differences between Afghanistan and Korea. Afghanistan culture is completely different from Korean culture. For instance, our religion is Islam, it has mostly a tribal and rural society. Our food, music and clothes are all different from Korean people s religion, food, clothes and music culture. 4. What was your former job in Afghanistan before coming to Korea? And what activities have you carried out? Niaz Mohammad Rahimi and Mirwai Ghani, participants of IATC short agricultural training program and masters degree student at KNU From year 2011 up to 2015 I have worked with Nutrition Education International (NEI). During my carrier, I worked in different positions (Agronomist, Research Development Program Coordinator and lastly before coming to Korea I worked as Agriculture Assistant Program Manager). This office works in part of soybean promotion and production among Afghan families, because most of Afghan families, especially children suffer from malnutrition; besides, economy of Afghan families especially in rural area is not good enough to prepare and eat food with high protein content such as meat, egg, etc. But soybean is very good food supplement and it is affordable, and has a high level of protein and oil content. By consumption of soybean, the rate of malnutrition can be reduced. 1. What was your first impression about Korea and how different is it now? I came to Korea in August 2015, and when I took off, I found out that Korea is really one of the developed countries, although before coming to Korea I saw some movies about Korea and I heard from my friends who had visited before. Step by step, I became familiar with Korean culture, food and all. 2. What is your favorite Korean dish and what are the differences and similarities between Korean food and Afghanistan food? 5. What impression did you get from the IATC Training Program you attended in Korea? I participated in the 2015 and 2016 IATC training program. The training was very good for exchanging of experience, agricultural related activities and also we received information about how South Korea come over on poverty, war and illiteracy. 08 09
IATC training news 6. Which lecture was the most interesting? Was the training program you went through helpful to you in your daily working place? If so, please describe in detail in what way it was practical and how you applied it. Actually all the lectures were interesting for me especially the lecture which was about Rural Development through Saemaeul Movement. From this lecture, I learned about how we can improve living in rural area, and it was very helpful for me because Afghanistan is a mountainside country and there is a very big gap between rural area and city. I also learnt about how we can change traditional agriculture to machinery system, etc. 7. Why was it specifically Kyungpook National University that you chose to study and what motivated you to study here? Kyungpook National University (KNU) is one of the top universities in Korea and education system is in high level; therefore, the company with which I worked in Afghanistan signed an MOU with KNU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Based on that MOU, I sent all my education document to KNU for screening and fortunately my document was accepted and I joined the College to study my masters degree. Understanding Daegu Agriculture Program For International Students In 2016, IATC (International Agricultural Training Center) worked in cooperation with Daegu city. We had various activities under the program Understanding of Daegu Agriculture Program for International Students and government officials in KNU. 8. What are you currently studying, and with whom? What are your objectives in studying for master s degree at KNU? Now I am doing my MSc program in Agronomy department, genetics and plant breeding lab under supervision of Professor Jeong Dong Lee. My study objective is estimating genetics and environment variation for soybean sprout. 9. What is your motto in your life? Honesty, studying, hardworking, serving for humanity. 10. Where do you see yourself in five years? Tell us about your detailed project you plan to do. [ Program of 2016 ] Date 1 2. June 2 3. June 3 30. June~1. July 4 11. August 5 1. September 6 21. October 7 28. October 8 16. December Contents Orientation on Understanding Daegu Agriculture program Daegu Flower show and cooking class Agriculture Technical Center at Dalsung-gun & Biseul Mountain World Insect Expo Yeocheon 2016 Drone experience & Daegu agriculture Expo 2016 Evaluation & Dinner Party Visit to Coffee Myungga and apple picking program Making flower class to promote and instill gardening as part of life In coming five years, I try to study more and I would like to do my Ph.D in KNU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Secondly I have a plan to start soybean breeding program in Afghanistan to develop best soybean variety with high yield and quality. 10 11
IATC training news The above programs were designed to inform foreign students and government officials about agriculture in Daegu. IATC got many responses from international students by conducting experiential events beyond education. Programs such as apple picking and coffee experience (in Coffee Myungga) were opportunities to raise the understanding and response of the participants by directly visiting the field. Also, IATC held Meeting and dinner party with Daegu city to evaluate and round up 2016 s program. Students picking apples In this event, international students and government officials made Thankyou card and expressed their gratitude to Daegu City and Kyungpook National University for supporting the program. As we were able to get a lot of attention with the site-centered program which meets the needs of the participants, we have planned more events of the sort for 2017. In 2017, our first program will be a small field trip to farming-related organizations. Students will organize their own teams, and submitted proposals will be chosen by IATC which will support the best plan. We will also be organizing other events for sustainable agriculturedevelopment. The Presentation contest that presents creative ideas and Daegu Agriculture Night which provides a forum to farmers from various countries where they could communicate with each other. In addition, we will provide an on-site visit once a month during February to June to provide customized programs for the growing demand. We are planning to do strawberry picking, visit Food-Well Company, and make a Haitai confectionary tour. Mimi Kang gave Thank-you card to Daegu City 12 13
IATC training news Follow-up Seminar on Sustainable Agriculture Development (SAD) IATC (International Agricultural Training Center) conducted a seminar for the evaluation and the training of agriculture follow-up management in New Delhi, India. Kyungpook National University International Agriculture Training Center (Director General Lim JinKyu) held Seminar for the evaluation and the training of sustainable follow-up management of agriculture development process from 28 th November to 2 nd December, 2016 in New Delhi, India, with 22 government agricultural officials from 10 countries including India, Jordan and Ghana which are member states of African-Asian Rural Development Organization (AARDO). Secretary General of AARDO, H.E. Engr. Wassfi Hassan El Sreihin been presented a certificate This training was conducted in order to provide a platform where graduates of Kyungpook National University International Agriculture Training Center gather altogether to give a presentation on best practices in actual work site after their training in Korea, and to establish action plans about best agricultural technology for each country through lectures and discussions with faculty members of College of Agriculture and Life Sciences of Kyungpook National University. Visit to Lodhi Tomb 14 15
Special Presentation by a trainee Interview IATC 16 17
Special interview Dr. Eli Gaveh College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Kumasi, Ghana. Delivering a lecture in an Agribusiness Management class Rural community based farmer education and extension 18 19
Special interview 2. What is the IATC Training Program you went through in Korea and what was your impression about it? KOICA offered me the kind privilege and support to participate in the IATC Course in Horticultural Crop Production. The course emphasized various highly efficient korean technological packages necessary to get the best out of the crops we produce. I got a strong impression that application and use of simple technologies in agriculture can significantly enhance outputs of farmers. I also understood that for agriculture to develop, there was need for integrated approach where all aspects of the commodity value chain were developed and made beneficial to all actors in the sector. 3. Was the training program you went through helpful in your daily working place? If so, please describe in detail in what way it was practical and how you applied it. Working with technicians in the research laboratory 1. What is your current job and what are the activities you are carrying out recently? What are your achievements so far? Until two years ago and prior to my studies in Korea, I used to work with the Directorate of Crop Services of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Ghana. Through the very good training received at Kyungpook under Professor Shin Dong Hyun and with Professor Kim Il Doo, I have become a Lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana. I am currently lecturing at the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, which is a premier Centre of Excellence in Africa for teaching in science, Technology development. It was extremely useful to my daily work in the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. We incorporated some of the training content into technical manuals and production guides we developed for farmers. Some of the information was also shared during farmer trainings and extensions. We were at that time implementing the Horticulture Export Industry Initiative project which was joined sponsored by the Government of Ghana and the World Bank. My role as the leader of the Technology Transfer and Monitoring Team of the project, positioned me well enough to influence the transfer of knowledge acquired from the IATC course. 4. Why was it specifically Kyungpook National University that you chose to study for Ph.D. degree and what motivated you to study here? Kyungpook was my place of choice because it stands out as the most reputable agricultural university in Korea. It is highly prestigious and one always graduates as a proud alumnus of the University. The highly trained lecturers and academic staff provide good guidance, counselling, and mentorship to raise future leaders. The mix of students from various parts of the world promote knowledge sharing and broadens the horizon of Kyungpook s graduates. The graduate courses are 20 21
Special interview customized to solve contemporary problems with the hope of making the world a better place. 5. What were your objectives in studying for Ph.D. degree and research you have made? Tell us about a challenge or conflict you faced during the study, and how you dealt with it. My Ph.D. study focused on examining the influence of a natural elicitor on the growth and biochemical properties of soybean sprouts. The objective of the study was to evaluate the pine needle extract as a natural elicitor on the growth and yield of soybean sprouts. Effect of the extracts on antioxidant capacity, mineral, fatty acid and microbial occurrence in the sprouts were evaluated. example KOICA to help set up the Horticulture Development Centre in my university. This will incorporate the Seed and Agribusiness Development unit. It is aimed to be a Centre of Excellence for horticulture, seed systems development, Research, technology development, and training of rural farmers. There is currently only one functional National Seed Testing Laboratory in Accra. If we set up this facility in Kumasi, it could grow to become the only ISTA (International Seed Testing Association) Certified Laboratory in Ghana and transform Ghana s agricultural industry significantly. I also want to have Kyungpook National University as a partner University to my institute. 8. Please describe the current agricultural situation in Ghana. What contribution will you make for its development? The challenges I encountered on my study were more social than academic related. The language was initially a challenge, but I had to overcome it. Coming to appreciate the beauty of the Language gave me higher determination to learn it. I made lots of Korean friends who were extremely kind and helpful. I developed taste for Kimchi too, though it was difficult for me to eat initially. 6. What is your motto in life? My motto in life is Strive for Excellence! This was derived from observing and experiencing the Korean way, Fighting spirit, and the purposefulness from the Sema il Udong principles I learnt. The biggest situation I find currently is farmers inability to produce high quality fruits and vegetables for the international market. Ghana s export of vegetables to the European Union, its main market, has been banned due to quality and phytosanitary concerns. Vegetables and fruit form the largest percentage of nontraditional exports from Ghana. Therefore, this ban is having a direct impact on the national economy in terms of foreign exchange earnings. The Food and Drugs Authority is the only agency in Ghana with a laboratory to test export horticultural and agricultural commodities, but their capacity is limited to only the southern part of the country. There is urgent need for a Horticulture Development Centre equipped with good laboratories to support the middle to northern sectors of the country as well. 7. Where do you see yourself in five years? Tell us about your detailed project you plan to do. I see myself as the Head of the Horticulture Department of my University in five years. I expect to be more influential in national level assignments towards agricultural and national development. My contribution to developing the sector will be setting up the Horticulture Development Centre with a certified laboratory and research centre as stated above to improve Ghana s horticultural research capability. I intend to train In terms of planned project, I am looking forward to collaborating partners for 22 23
IATC NEWSLETTER No. 21 March 2017 Chief of Editor Editors Lim, Jinkyu. Ph.D. ( jkylim @ knu.ac.kr) Lee, Soon-hyang (espoirlee @ knu.ac.kr) Lim, Seulki ( yamseul2 @ knu.ac.kr) Designer Kim, Ha-eun (rlak032114 @ gmail.com) Address International Agricultural Training Center, Room 407, Building 1, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Kyungpook National University, Daehak-ro 80, Buk-gu, Daegu, 702-701, Republic of Korea. Tel Fax Website +82-53-950-6820 +82-53-950-6789 http://www-2.knu.ac.kr/~iast/ Follow us on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iatcknu We hope to communicate more with you through this Facebook Homepage this year. Please share any advice or recommendations that you would like to give to future IATC participants or suggestions for IATC. We wish you good health and happiness in your lives. Kind Regards, >> from IATC 24
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