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  1. JICA Partnership Program "Strengthening of Agricultural Education at Secondary Schools in Nepal" started
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2022/06/15

JICA Partnership Program "Strengthening of Agricultural Education at Secondary Schools in Nepal" started

Shinshu University Faculty of Agriculture, in cooperation with Kamiina Agricultural High School in Nagano, has launched the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Partnership Program "Strengthening of Agricultural Education in Secondary Schools in Nepal (Promoting Glocal Education in Nagano Prefecture with High School-University Cooperation).

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Agricultural high school in Kavrepalanchok

The climate of Nepal is a wide range from the subtropical area in the lowlands to the alpine zone, depending on the elevation difference. Since the agricultural field accounts for approx. 30% of GDP in Nepal, it is very important for the stability of agricultural products and the improvement of productivity to select crops suited to the region in diverse environments and to learn how to grow suitable for the climate. For this reason, the government of Nepal has placed a high priority on becoming nationwide spread agricultural education and began introducing agricultural courses in secondary education in 2014. However, so far, although the curriculum for agricultural courses has been developed, learning agricultural technologies in the region, environmental and market conditions surrounding agriculture, and living conditions has not made part of the content for agricultural education, yet.

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Practical learning at Khobang High School in Mustang as a model school

Shinshu University, in collaboration with Kamiina Agricultural High School, put into action the JICA partnership program, "Strengthening Education at Agricultural High Schools in Nepal," from 2016 to 2018 at Khobang High School in Mustang District, Dhaulagiri, Western Development Region, and worked with teachers in the agriculture department to create teaching materials on agriculture appropriate for the project targeted area. The project is implemented from February 4, 2022, to February 3, 2025, to put to use the results of the last project and to develop it. In this phase, Khobang High School is a model for the educational reform project, and two high schools with different climatic and agricultural conditions (Banepa High School in Kavrepalanchok District, Bagmati, and Ratnanagar High School in Chitwan District, Narayani, both located in Central Development Region) is added as a new project area. Aiming of strengthening agricultural education in rural areas of Nepal, the project will develop and enhance practical agricultural education systems, teaching methods, and teaching materials suited for each region.