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Awarding Ceremony, 2026 (20th) Japan International Award for Young Agricultural Researchers (Japan Award)

Established in 2007, the Japan International Award for Young Agricultural Researchers (Japan Award) marks its 20th edition this year. The awarding ceremony will be held on Thursday, November 26, 2026, and will feature presentations by this year’s three award recipients. To celebrate this milestone, two former award recipients will also deliver commemorative lectures on their research activities and achievements since receiving the award.

About the Award
The Japan Award, organized by the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Council (AFFRC), Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), Japan, aims to encourage young researchers from outside Japan who are under 40 years of age and contribute to research and development in agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and related industries in developing regions.
The award recognizes:
(1) Young researchers from outside Japan who have made outstanding contributions to research and development in developing regions.
(2) Young researchers from outside Japan whose outstanding research achievements have the potential to lead to future technological innovation.
Each year, up to three researchers receive a certificate of commendation from the Chairman of the AFFRC and a cash prize of US$5,000 (the MOTAI–JIRCAS Award*).


＊ Mr. Shigeru MOTAI, former Chairman of the AFFRC, is the donor of this award, which is also supported by the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS).
 

 

Date

Thursday, November 26th, 2026

9:00               Registration opens

9:30 - 10:25   Awarding ceremony

10:40 - 11:45 Lectures by Award Recipients and Former Recipients

Awarding Ceremony, Japan International Award for Young Agricultural Researchers
Date
2026-11-26(Thu) 09:30～11:45 (JST)
Place
"Akihabara Convention Hall" and On-line (Akihabara Dai Bldg. 2F , 1-18-13 Sotokanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0021)
Access: https://www.akibahall.jp/access.html
Registration period
- (JST)
Registration
Public Relations Partnership Unit, JIRCAS
Address
 1-1 Ohwashi, Tsukuba Ibaraki 305-8686 Japan
Telephone
029-838-6708
URL
https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/QTXddUPgzk
Registration deadline:
(JST)
Email
info-pr@jircas.go.jp
2026 (The 20th) Awardees
Name
(Age＊1, Gender, Nationality)
Institute＊2
Research Achievement
Dr. Sourou Angelot Paterne AGRE
（38, Male, Beninese）
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA
Transforming Yam Production in Africa through Integrated Breeding, Genomics, and Innovation
Dr. Bappa DAS
（36, Male, Indian）
ICAR-National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning
Development and Deployment of Remote Sensing and Artificial Intelligence-based Digital Technologies for Sustainable Natural Resource Management and Climate-Smart Agriculture
Dr. Valentina Rocio CORDOVA-ALARCON
（34, Female, Chilean）
Universidad de Chile
Traceability and Authenticity in Fishmeal: development and evaluation of integrated CRISPR-Cas and DETECTR systems for species identification in complex samples traded from Chilean fisheries to the world

＊1 Age is as of January 1, 2026
＊2 Affiliation is as of the time of application.

Commemorative Lectures Celebrating the 20th Japan Award

To celebrate the 20th edition of the Japan Award, two former award recipients will deliver commemorative lectures on their research activities and achievements since receiving the award.

  • Dr. Lee Hong TNAH
    Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Malaysia
    Recipient of the 7th Japan Award (2013)
     
  • Dr. Viengsakoun NAPASIRTH
    Faculty of Agriculture, National University of Laos, Lao PDR
    Recipient of the 9th Japan Award (2015)
Contact

Information and Public Relations Office, JIRCAS

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