National Agricultural Extension Center and Bayer Company received international awards for innovations in rice cultivation.

The GovMedia Workshop and Awards Ceremony aims to honor outstanding public-private partnership projects in Asian countries that have a positive impact on local communities.

This award is a recognition of the successes and positive impact of the ForwardFarming sustainable rice farming project that the two parties have jointly implemented in the Mekong Delta region. This prestigious award marks the successful journey of the ForwardFarming model – sustainable rice farming towards the future – since its implementation in Vietnam.

The Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Award in the agricultural sector is considered a prestigious award marking the successful journey of the ForwardFarming model.

The ForwardFarming initiative was launched in September 2023 in collaboration with the National Agricultural Extension Center and Bayer Vietnam. This initiative focuses on promoting sustainable rice farming through the implementation of advanced farming practices, plant protection solutions, and advanced seed treatment, combined with technical training for farmers.

The National Center for Agricultural Extension and Bayer are honored to receive the Public-Private Partnership Award in agriculture for their ForwardFarming initiative.

Three rice crops implemented on the experimental field model consistently yielded positive results: a 13.5% increase in yield, a reduction in irrigation water and input materials, a 24.7% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions during cultivation, and improved soil quality indicators. In addition, the project focused on enhancing farmers' capacity and knowledge of sustainable farming practices through various training programs.

To date, more than 4,500 farmers in Can Tho, An Giang, and Kien Giang have received guidance and knowledge transfer on high-quality rice cultivation, effective, safe, and responsible use of pesticides, and application of emission reduction measures in farming practices suitable to local farming practices and conditions.

Mr. Le Quoc Thanh - Director of the National Agricultural Extension Center, representing Bayer Vietnam and its partners, discussed the ForwardFarming model with delegates.

At the awards ceremony, Mr. Mateus Barros - Director of Crop Science , East Asia & Pakistan, Bayer, shared: "We deeply appreciate and are grateful for the cooperation and support of the National Agricultural Extension Center and other partners in the ForwardFarming project."

"This meaningful award marks the 30th anniversary of Bayer's operations in Vietnam and serves as motivation for us to continue developing our strengths in agriculture, expanding cooperation in the rice production value chain, and promoting research and development activities, with a focus on regenerative agriculture solutions, in order to bring about positive and sustainable transformations to Vietnamese agriculture," said Mr. Mateus Barros.

The results of the ForwardFarming model on experimental fields showed increased rice yield, reduced input costs, and improved sustainability indicators.

With the goal of expanding the ForwardFarming project, Bayer and the National Agricultural Extension Center have discussed and proposed several development plans, specifically: Continuing research and development of technologies and solutions to improve rice yield and quality, and reduce emissions in farming; expanding the network of strategic partners; and strengthening training activities for farmers in the Mekong Delta region. Through these efforts, the aim is to gradually improve the lives of farmers while contributing to the goal of developing 1 million hectares of sustainable, high-quality, low-emission rice.

The GovMedia Workshop and Awards Ceremony aims to honor outstanding public-private partnership projects in Asian countries that deliver positive impacts to local communities. This year's awards ceremony recognized 23 business organizations and government agencies from various countries for their large-scale collaborative projects. These projects primarily focused on capacity building and improving organizational efficiency to achieve positive, far-reaching, and highly applicable and widespread transformations.

Source: https://danviet.vn/trung-tam-khuyen-nong-quoc-gia-va-cong-ty-bayer-duoc-trao-giai-thuong-quoc-te-nho-sang-kien-trong-trong-lua-20240711162654108.htm