Vinh Long province welcomes JICA’s first ever volunteer working in the Mekong Delta

Source: JICA  (CPV) - Ms.TATENO Tomoko has become JICA’s first ever volunteer working in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long, Vietnam. Ms. Tateno Tomoko starts her work as a rural community development staff for a Technical Cooperation Project on citrus improvement between JICA and the Southern Fruit Research Institute (SOFRI). Before coming to Vietnam, Ms. Tateno Tomoko had 4 years in charge of financing for agriculture, forestry, fisheries in Miyagi prefecture (Japan) where she lives. During her 2 year term (till Sept 2013) in Vinh Long province, TATENO works together with staffs of the Province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to improve the effect of the Citrus Improvement Project in the province. The Technical Cooperation Project on citrus between SouthOFRI and JICA is named “ The project for Improvement of Extension System for Applying Better Farming System and Cultivation Techniques for poor farmers in Mekong Dekta”. This project has associated with DARDs of 5 provinces(Tien Giang, Vinh Long, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang) in order to help farmers in the project zones get necessary know-how, skills and techniques on cultivating citrus. Source: JICA  The project also aims to help agricultural staffs who have joined in the project zones, improve their capacity in instructing farmers with cultivation system, the cultivation techniques on citrus. Moreover, the project helps SOFRI improve its capacity instructing farmers and agricultural staffs and introduce the developed cultivation system and the techniques cultivating citrus to Vietnamese farmers. The Japanese volunteer dispatching Program is conducted in the scheme of Technical Cooperation of JICA. Until now, there have been more 400 volunteers sent to Vietnam by JICA in many fields such as education, health, agriculture-rural development, environment, supporting industry development… in various regions throughout Vietnam from Tuyen Quang, Bac Giang, Hanoi, Hoa Binh, Ha Tinh, Hue, Da Nang, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Ho Chi Minh, An Giang, Can Tho, Ca Mau… Currently, there are 72 JICA’s volunteers working in Viet Nam.

Khac Kien