The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco to Japan, Mr. Rachad Bouhlal, paid a courtesy visit to JIRCAS President, Dr. Masa Iwanaga, on May 13, 2019. Pres. Iwanaga introduced JIRCAS’ research programs and projects and exchanged opinions with Ambassador Bouhlal on the areas of potential research collaboration.

The G20 Agriculture Ministers' Meeting was convened on May 11-12, 2019 in Niigata, Japan as one of the ministerial meetings alongside the G20 Osaka Summit (June 28-29). As Chairman of the G20 Meeting of Agricultural Chief Scientists (G20 MACS), JIRCAS President Dr. Masa Iwanaga participated in this meeting and reported the key outcomes of the G20 MACS held in Tokyo (April 25-26).

The 8th Meeting of G20 Chief Agricultural Scientists (G20 MACS) chaired by JIRCAS President, Dr. Masa Iwanaga, was convened on April 25-26, 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. The two-day meeting focused on discussions on two major issues, namely, transboundary plant pests and facilitating on-site adoption of climate-smart technologies. Various research initiatives on management and control of transboundary plant pests at JIRCAS were presented by Program Director, Dr. Kazuo Nakashima.

The Indonesian Agricultural Research and Development Agency (IAARD) and JIRCAS signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to extend the implementation of joint research based on the agreement signed in 2007.

The JIRCAS Open House Day was held on April 19-20, 2019 in conjunction with the Science and Technology Week.

JIRCAS ranks 8th in “Plant Science and Zoology” category of highly cited papers

The JIRCAS Research Highlight 2018 is a compilation of selected R&D achievements for the entire fiscal year promoting the dissemination and wide application of results to academic and non-academic audiences.

A member of the Parliament and former Health Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, Mr. Gagan Tapa visited JIRCAS on March 7, 2019.

A policy suggestion workshop, titled “Suggestions for mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from rice cultivation in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. The workshop was handled by an expert from the Mekong River Commission based in Lao PDR and four researchers from JIRCAS. The workshop was successfully concluded by handing over the policy suggestion paper from Dr. Satoshi Tobita, program director at JIRCAS, to Mr. Cao Vinh Thong, head of the Plant Protection Department under DARD.

The 47th TARF Public Lecture with the theme “Organic Agriculture for Reduction of Global Warming and Maintenance of Crop Productivity” was held at Ishigaki City, Okinawa Pref. on February 28, 2019.

Mr. Ibrahim Abani Sani, Secretary General of the Cooperation, African Integration and Nigerians Abroad, Ministry for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Niger visited JIRCAS on February 21, 2019

A delegation from the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI) visited JIRCAS on February 21, 2019.

JIRCAS, in collaboration with the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) , an agency under the Department of Agriculture, Philippines, has been conducting a series of studies in Negros Island since 2016, with the aim of developing adequate nitrogen fertilizer application methods for sugarcane cultivation in the country by adjusting the timing and application rate to fertilizer demand.

President Masa Iwanaga, together with five senior officials of JIRCAS, attended the ICAR-CSSRI Golden Jubilee International Salinity Conference, titled “Resilient Agriculture in Saline Environments under Changing Climate: Challenges & Opportunities”, in Karnal, Haryana, India, on February 7-9, 2019.

In conjunction with the Science Q program of Tsukuba Science City, Dr. Kouki Maeda, Senior Researcher of the Crop Livestock and Environment Division gave an on-site lesson to Grade 6 pupils of Katsuragi Elementary School on January 31, 2019.