USDA Announces $1.5 Million for Educational Fellowship Programs in Ghana, Guatemala, and Mexico

WASHINGTON, Dec. 19, 2022 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture is awarding $1.5 million to Texas A&M University and the University of Missouri to establish school-based programs in Ghana, Guatemala, and Mexico through the International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program.

The International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program, or IAEFP, established in 2018, provides fellowships to eligible U.S. citizens to help developing countries establish school-based agricultural education and youth extension programs. The universities will collaborate with local institutions and organizations to support the selected fellows in their efforts.

The fellowships in Ghana and Guatemala are sponsored by Texas A&M University, which launched the inaugural IAEFP in Ghana in 2021. In Guatemala, Texas A&M University will partner with Humanitas for the duration of the fellowship program. In Ghana, the university will partner with Global, 4-H Ghana, Vivayic Learning Solutions, and Argicorps. Nine fellows in each country will produce programs with four components: classroom instruction, school demonstration farm, home entrepreneurship projects, and leadership development.

The University of Missouri’s fellowship in Mexico will focus on positive youth development and agricultural extension activities to raise awareness and education about sustainable agricultural production. The eight participating fellows will collaborate with Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla to initiate the program.

“I am excited for FAS to work with these universities to strengthen international communities,” FAS Administrator Daniel Whitley said. “IAEFP is a great opportunity for students to gain teaching and agricultural experience by living abroad while also creating stronger relationships between the U.S. agricultural industries and their host countries.”

To learn more about the IAEFP and future Notice of Funding Opportunities for program implementers, visit: https://fas.usda.gov/programs/international-agricultural-education-fellowship-program.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.

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