Liu Hung-Tse, an agricultural technician from the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF), is an alumnus of the Department of Agronomy at National Chiayi University. He has been stationed with the technical team in Nicaragua for 7 years since 2014, and with the technical team in Papua New Guinea since 2021. He promotes upland rice through cultivation projects, technology development, and farmer guidance. While continuing the excellent tradition of the NCYU Agricultural Technical Mission, he introduces the innovative concept of sustainable agriculture.
Despite the fact that agriculture is one of the major sources of economic income for Nicaragua, there is a lack of quality seeds and cultivation techniques and materials. The technical team led by Liu is commited to developing new varieties and cultivation technologies, purifying local varieties, establishing seed propagation demonstration areas, and improving rice cultivation skills among smallholding farmers and technicians, among others. To support Nicaragua's rice development and farmers' livelihoods, they also assist medium- to small-scale farmers in obtaining the rice varieties and techniques needed for upland rice cultivation, and establishing a localized production model with a sustainability concept. Papua New Guinea relies on imports for 85% of its staple food, rice. Liu’s technical team and the National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI), Papua New Guinea, jointely proposed a plan to increase rice seed production and establish a rice seed propagation center. They would also produce original rice seeds for rice seed production, and build up the capabilities to propagate, preserve, and identify rice seed varieties. This has laid a solid foundation for the mechanized cultivation of 20,000 hectares of rice in Papua New Guinea, and the results have been highly recognized at the International Rice Congress (IRC) 2023.
Since 1960, many NCYU alumni have traveled to Central and South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia to provide agricultural technical assistance. By faciliating friendships and economic exchanges, they bring Taiwan’s specialized agricultural technology and the spirit of the NCYU Agricultural Technical Mission to the rest of the world. In 2018, NCYU was awarded the Outstanding Agricultural Contribution Award by the UN’s World Harmony Foundation (WHF), which is of far-reaching significance. As an agricultural technician from a younger generation stationed abroad, Liu inherits the legacy of the NCYU Agricultural Technical Mission. To promote upland rice overseas, he underscores the concept of environmental sustainability in modern agriculture, where they focus on both production increase and environmental sustainability. The ultimate goal is to fulfill Taiwan’s social responsibility as a member of the global village.
Twelve years after graduation, Liu looked back with mixed feelings, “All the challenges I faced in my youth are nutrients for growth, and all the hard work I did when young will not be wasted. When I look back on the past, it’s like walking alone on a mountain trail for the first time in a developing country, which was bumpy, muddy, and full of unknowns. But I also know that only after this experience, which might happen again and again in the future, will I be able to go farther and longer.
Alumnus Liu Hung-Tse organized a rice technician training program in Papua New Guinea.