RDA trains students abroad
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Rural Development Administration (RDA) trainees work in a rice field in Cambodia, on Dec. 16, 2016. Twice a year, the state-run agricultural research institute dispatches a group of university students in agricultural science as trainees to its Korea Project on International Agriculture centers in 20 countries. / Courtesy of RDA
By Lee Hyo-sik
The Rural Development Administration (RDA), the state-run agricultural research institute, has been dispatching university students to its overseas branches, helping them find jobs in the field of agricultural science.
The institute has set up Korea Project on International Agriculture (KOPIA) centers in 20 developing countries in its campaign to share its knowhow with the developing world.
The RDA operates six KOPIA centers in Africa, eight in Asia and six in South America, offering practical, field-oriented support to local farmers.
Each year, it spent millions of dollars to run the centers, each of which has nine RDA employees all year round, providing on-the-spot, tailor-made technical assistance, undertaking joint research activities with host countries and offering training programs.
From 2009 through the first half of 2017, the RDA dispatched a total of 903 university students majoring in agricultural science to KOPIA centers as trainees. In August, 33 more students will head overseas to gain valuable on-the-ground knowledge and experience while working with RDA employees in 20 developing nations.
“Since 2009, we have selected dozens of young students majoring in agricultural science as trainees and dispatched them to our KOPIA centers,” an official of RDA said. “They normally stay abroad for about a year and work with RDA employees on various tasks. For instance, they study how to increase crop yield and develop seeds that are more suitable for the local environment. If trainees want to work longer, they can extend their stay by another year.”
The institute said among those dispatched to KOPIA centers between 2012 and 2014, 63.2 percent later found jobs in their respective fields.
“In addition to working on crops and livestock, each trainee is given an assignment by RDA employees to complete before they return home. So, we keep them quite busy,” the official said. “We do not take advantage of them as cheap laborers. We want them to see how things work in the field and find answers on their own. We also want the trainees to communicate with locals as much as possible and learn about the value of helping those in need.”
He said the RDA will continue to dispatch aspiring students to KOPIA centers to nurture more agricultural talent. “Hopefully, our training program will help them when they later look for jobs in the agricultural field.”