In March 2022, the BNI-enhanced wheat research was awarded the Cozzarelli Prize for the best paper in 2021 by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS). A video intro highlighting the results of this work has now been published on the PNAS YouTube channel.

H.E. Mr. Mohamed Elloumi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Tunisia to Japan, and his delegation visited JIRCAS on April 25, 2022 and exchanged opinions with President Koyama and other officials.

Senior Researcher Papa Saliou Sarr, who has been on a business trip in Burkina Faso since April this year, had an opportunity to be interviewed by the local newspaper "Infos-Sciences-Culture" and the article was prominently published on April 15, 2022. In the interview, Dr. Sarr gave an overview of the SATREPS project in Burkina Faso, introduced the process of solubilization of phosphate ores by soil microorganisms, and explained how soil microorganisms play an important role in crop production.

Senior Researcher, Dr. Guntur V. Subbarao, gave a TED Talk of the JIRCAS research on biological nitrification inhibition (BNI) at TED2022: A NEW ERA held in Vancouver, Canada from April 10 to 14, 2022.

The SATREPS Super Food Bolivia website for the project "Strengthening of Resilience in Arid Agro-Ecosystems Vulnerable to Climate Change, Through Research on Plant Resources and Technological Applications" is now open.

A manual describing the materials and specific procedures required to implement the simple shoot-tip grafting method for virus-free passion fruit plantlets was released on April 4, 2022.

Two JIRCAS research projects adopted in FY2021 under the Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) program jointly implemented by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have been approved by the partner countries and will now officially start joint research, replacing the previous conditional collaboration.

The first year of the 5-year Fifth Medium to Long-term Plan, which started in April 2021, has passed. As mandated by the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the 5th Plan redefined the noble mission of JIRCAS as Japan’s leading international research institute in the field of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, to enhance agriculture, forestry, and fisheries technology in the world including Japan, and to contribute to the advancement of sustainable  agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, towards the accomplishment of the government policy on the Basic Plan for Food, Agriculture and Rural Areas. To meet this target, the following tasks are prioritized in order to contribute in solving global food and environmental issues.

On March 17, 2022, JIRCAS held a signing ceremony for a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for joint research with the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), Department of Agriculture, Republic of the Philippines.

A promotional video of the SATREPS “Project for Breakthrough in Nutrient Use Efficiency for Rice by Genetic Improvement and Fertility Sensing Techniques in Africa” is now available on the JICA Madagascar "Fy Vary Project" YouTube channel.