On August 27 and 28, 2026, the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS) held a workshop for the TERRA Africa Project at the headquarters of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, Nigeria. The workshop, themed “Strengthening Science-Based Regenerative Agriculture Packages for Sustainable Farming Systems in Africa,” was attended by approximately 35 researchers and stakeholders from Japan, Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Uganda, and Ethiopia, including representatives from the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA), universities, national research institutions, IITA, and the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA). An additional 10 participants joined online.

On March 16, 2026, at the 139th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Tropical Agriculture (JSTA) held at the University of Tsukuba, Dr. DAN Haruyuki, Senior Researcher in the Rural Development Division, received the JSTA President’s Award and delivered a commemorative lecture.

From February 17 to 18, 2026, the “TERRA Africa Project FY2025 Activity Report Meeting” was held at the University for Development Studies (UDS) in Tamale, Northern Ghana. A total of 54 participants attended, including researchers from JIRCAS, UDS, and the Savannah Agricultural Research Institute (SARI), as well as representatives from the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) and The Nippon Foundation.

On Thursday, August 21, from 18:30 to 19:30, the TICAD9 Thematic Event (MAFF Seminar) titled “Fostering the Future Through International Collaborative Research: Young Researchers Engaging with Africa” was held in a hybrid format at Exhibition Hall D of Pacifico Yokohama. The event was organized by JIRCAS and supported by the Japan Intellectual Support Network in Agricultural Sciences (JISNAS).

On August 22, in conjunction with the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9), a special seminar featuring AGRA President Alice Ruhweza, titled “Building Climate-Resilient Agrifood Systems in Africa – the Role of Science and Public-Private Partnership," was held at the TKP Garden City PREMIUM Minato Mirai in Yokohama City. 

JIRCAS Senior Researcher, Dr. Koide Junji of the Social Sciences Division, received the Young Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Researcher Award for 2022 for his work on development of a versatile agricultural management planning model for small-scale farmers.

The farm management planning support programs, Builder of Farming Model — BFMgh and BFMbf, have been developed and released to efficiently support decision making, including technology selection, by smallholder farmers in Ghana and Burkina Faso.

In Africa, most drainage channels in paddy fields constructed by farmers are earth canals, which are easily eroded by strong rains and running water, and result in diminishment of canal functions. We have published a manual that introduces inexpensive reinforcement measures for irrigation canals (reinforcement using cover-plants, wooden fence, and soil bricks) that can be implemented by farmers.

Dr. Satoshi Nakamura, researcher of the Crop, Livestock and Environment Division, received the “Best Paper Award” from the Japanese Society for Tropical Agriculture for his paper entitled “Soil Fertility Management for Sustainable Lowland Rice Production in Ghana - Farmer's Perspectives and Soil Physicochemical Properties - ” published in the journal Tropical Agriculture and Development.

The heads of 5 agricultural research institutes from Africa, namely, Dr. Famoï Béavogui, Director of Agricultural Research Institute of Guinea (IRAG); Dr. Alioune Fall, Director of Senegal Agricultural Research Institute (ISRA); Dr. Joseph G. Mureithi, Deputy Director of Kenya Agriculture and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO); and Dr. Robert B. Zougmore, African Regional Leader of the Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), together with Dr. Regina Sagoe West, Senior Researcher at Crop Research Institute (CSIR-CRI) and Coordinator of West African Agricultural Production Program (WAAPP) of the International Research Center for Semiarid Tropical Crops (ICRISAT), visited JIRCAS on August 28, 2017.