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JIRCAS Mail Magazine No. 47 (September 2023)
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JIRCAS Launches TERRA Africa Project to Establish Regenerative Agriculture Suitable for Africa
https://www.jircas.go.jp/en/release/2023/press202309

In collaboration with national and international institutions, JIRCAS will promote the advancement and widespread adoption of soil and crop management technologies tailored to the African context.

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■ Latest Topics
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● Workshop Introduces Liquefaction Control Technology for Fermented Rice Noodles in Thailand
Dr. MARUI Junichiro, Senior Researcher of the Biological Resources and Post-harvest Division, who developed the liquefaction control technology for khanomjeen, participated as a collaborator.
https://www.jircas.go.jp/en/reports/2023/r20230920

● Delegation from the International Coral Reef Research and Monitoring Center of the Ministry of Environment Visits TARF
As reducing environmental loads such as sediment and nutrients from land areas is important for coral reef conservation, the visit was aimed at learning about the TARF research activities in the "Yama-Sato-Umi agroecosystem connectivity” project.
https://www.jircas.go.jp/en/reports/2023/r20230914

● Development of Technology for Accurate Dating of Tropical Secondary Forests
This technology is expected to advance the assessment of carbon sequestration and biodiversity in tropical secondary forests, leading to the establishment of appropriate forest conservation and management techniques in Southeast Asia. (External link: Kochi University, Japanese only)
http://www.kochi-u.ac.jp/information/2023091100013/

● Discovery of a Hormone that Regulates Body Color and Growth in Kuruma Prawn Marsupenaeus japonicus
The eyestalk-like hormone was found to stimulate the growth of male prawns and is expected to significantly improve aquaculture efficiency. (External link: Kanazawa University, Japanese only)
https://www.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/230913.pdf

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■ New Technologies and Research Outputs
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Although we have started a new project in Africa, we have been conducting a number of research projects.
Here are some examples of our research results in FY2022

● Plant sex and flowering date are strong determinants of tuber yield in white guinea yam
The study showed that female yams had higher yields than male yams, especially when the plants flowered earlier.
Therefore, breeding female yam plants for earlier flowering could potentially result in increased yields.
https://www.jircas.go.jp/en/publication/research_results/2022_b05

● Increased lowland rice yield improves nutrition of farmers in Madagascar
As rice yields increased in rural Madagascar, increased income from sales translated into increased purchases of nutritious foods.
These findings suggest that increased productivity of major cereal crops not only improves nutritional intake, but also contributes to improved energy levels.
https://www.jircas.go.jp/en/publication/research_results/2022_b09

● Mitigating income stagnation and volatility in African smallholder agriculture using small reservoir irrigation technology and stochastic programming model
The implementation of irrigation systems such as reservoirs is anticipated to bring stability to production and enhance profitability for smallholder farmers in Africa.
To support the improvement of local farming systems, a program called BFMgh has been established to develop improved farming plans for smallholder farmers in Ghana.
https://www.jircas.go.jp/en/publication/research_results/2022_b10

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■ Publications
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● Annual report 2022
https://www.jircas.go.jp/ja/publication/annual_report/2022

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■ Call for Submissions
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We welcome submissions of articles about overseas events, timely local information, etc.
To submit an article, please include your affiliation, name (anonymous is OK), and article title to
koho-jircas@ml.affrc.go.jp
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【Edited and Published by】
Information and Public Relations Office
Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS)
1-1 Ohwashi, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8686, Japan