The University of Illinois, like most of its Land Grant University peers, got involved in international agriculture in the 1950s. This was the dawn of the age of institution-building in developing countries. Through the auspices of the Agency for International Development (AID), the American government mobilized American colleges of agriculture to create similar colleges in Asian, African and South American countries. Illinois got involved in 1952, and was among the first American universities that were awarded large contracts to develop such institutions.
Tom McCowen, then director of the campus Overseas Projects Office, said that the motivation for participating in such grand-scale projects by faculty in the college could be explained by World War II. "World War II opened the eyes of the American people outside their state. They saw that people lived differently than we did. Most came back with a feeling that we should share our ideals and knowledge with those interested," McCowen said.
The institution building business required that we harness and mobilize the resources for our entire college to create something from nothing on foreign soil. We also had to bring large numbers of scientists and teachers to the U.S., train them thoroughly, and then return them to mold into a faculty. These goals were achieved, in part, because the Illinois faculty at the time interrupted their everyday professional activities and those of their families to live in the foreign country. Two of our former faculty wrote a book on such experiences, with chapters included on putting aside stateside affairs and dealing with servants.
The College instituted an Office of International Agriculture in the late 1960s to coordinate these affairs, with a director placed at the associate dean level. Hundreds of foreign students arrived on campus during this time through the 1980s to receive advanced degree training through this program, and thousands of others arrived to participate in short courses.
INDIA
With the leadership of Frank Parker, a director of soils research in the U.S. Department of Agriculture who left Washington to become chief agriculturalist and advisor to the Indian Ministry of Agriculture in 1952, a formal agreement was signed between the U.S. and Indian governments. The agreement was designed to strengthen Indian institutions concerned with agricultural instruction, research and extension. The objectives would be achieved through purchase of educational materials, the interchange of staff between U.S. and Indian agricultural institutions and provision of additional U.S. specialists if needed and the opportunity for Indians to pursue additional studies outside India. The agreement divided India into five regions, with one U.S. university assigned to the Indian universities within that region. The University of Illinois was assigned Region I, which included Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. U of I was already working with the Allahabad Agricultural Institute in Uttar Pradesh through an agreement signed two years earlier with the Department of State.
G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pant Nagar (Uttar Pradesh Agricultural University)
H.W. Hannah arrived in 1955 in Utter Pradesh to establish a plan to build a university at Uttar Pradesh and get approval and funding from Indian government. The land that was set aside to build the university was a jungle swamp, a non-livable community that was quickly being built up for habitation with construction of a hospital, roads, laboratories and a secondary school. Through two years of government stalling and positioning, the plan to build the university near the Tarai State Farm in this jungle area was approved in 1957.
During the U of I's tenure in Utter Pradesh beginning in 1959, six to eight faculty came to India at a time serving between 2 and 4 year terms for a period of 12 years. Dr. William Thompson, a team member on site at Utter Pradesh, shared that it was unusual for the project to start a university in a place with nothing. All buildings and facilities had to be constructed in the jungle there. In 1965, drastic upheaval of the university board of directors, which was spurred by lack of state government support for the institution, caused removal of the entire administrative and governance team of the university. D.P. Singh was named vice chancellor of the university with complete control over its affairs until a new board of directors was chosen. Under Singh's leadership, many necessary upgrades took place, and the university flourished. The University of Illinois left Utter Pradesh in 1972, when President Nixon ordered Americans out of the near east. Tom McCowen lamented that their job was not complete, but left a well-running operation that still is in existence today.
Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Jabalpur, (Madhya Pradesh Agricultural University)
The Madhya Pradesh projects started out as a regional program to help 12-13 small colleges improve their technical programs and curricula. Pressure from the Indian government caused the U of I to help the smaller schools form one new university at their state farm in Rigorpur. Teams were sent to India at the request of the Indians on site. The specialists in home science, veterinary medicine, basic science and agriculture engineering were chosen based on their teaching and research functions here on campus.
Communication between the 12-13 locations was arduous. If communication to campus was needed, a letter was mailed in a diplomatic pouch and sent air mail, taking 2 weeks. Then a reply was generated on campus and sent back, taking another 2 weeks. Tom McCowen, then director of the project here on campus, said that the U of I staff on site would have to wait six weeks to get an answer to questions.
Research needs at Madhya Pradesh took first priority. The improved capabilities of the research farms allowed improved crop varieties and knowledge of ways to increase crop production through use of fertilizers and chemicals. In addition, an agricultural communications center was established, providing a vital extension role for the university.
With both of these university projects, more than 90 Illinois faculty traveled to India during the course of the two projects. In addition, Illinois hosted 250 Indian students for advanced degree programs, and assisted in the training of more than 800 staff in India.
The overall India program, including the five U.S. universities that participated, totaled more than $41,000,000. Illinois' expenditures during the program 1964-1972, equaled more than $7.5 million. (Read).
ZAMBIA
Zambia Agricultural, Research and Extension (ZAMARE)
When a proposal to upgrade human capabilities was submitted to the Zambian Department of Agriculture a long standing relationship began between the University of Illinois and Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. The partnership started obtaining funds in 1981, and moved into the field from 1982-1988. It was initiated by the Zambian Minister of Agriculture, who hoped to assist the department of agriculture's associated research stations to upgrade human capabilities and provide research direction using the extension model as a framework.
Seven professors were put on the ground in Zambia from a range of disciplines. "The term farming systems was a buzz word at the time. There were many efforts to attempt to integrate research and extension at the whole farm level, instead of positioning specialists solely by commodity," said Oval Myers of SIU. In Zambia, corn, soybeans and sunflower were primary commodities.
The Zambian Department of Agriculture Research Stations were set up with three person teams called adaptive research planning teams (ARPT's). The teams, consisting of one farming system expert, one economist, and one extension specialist. The teams were to interface with commodity experts on the ground in the area of corn, soybeans and sunflowers or other local crops. The U of I and SIU team were located in Zambia's Central Province. Other provinces also had teams on the ground from England, Germany and Scandinavia.
Four duty stations were established for the ZAMARE project. The capitol, Lusaka, was home for the team leader who worked side-by-side with the Director of Agriculture. The capitol was 10 miles to the Mt. Makulu station, with two of the other stations, Magoye and Kabwe 2-3 hours by vehicle. Driving was the only reliable method of communication as the telephone service was erratic and shortwave radios didn't always work.
At the beginning of the Zambian independence in 1964, there was one Bachelor of Science graduate in the Ministry. In 1988, 49 had received B.S. or advanced degrees through the program, mostly receiving them at U of I or SIU.
Dr. Myers shared his reasoning for being involved in the project by saying: "The West was already won and I was too old to go to the moon."
SIERRA LEONE
Njala University College
Njala University College was formed in 1964 as a new educational institution. The college then offered two-year certificate programs in agriculture, trades and crafts and home economics, and four-year degree courses were formed in agriculture, education and home economics. The University of Illinois traveled there to assist in developing an institution with integrated research, instruction, extension and teacher training programs. More specifically, they wanted assistance with programs to build the country's agriculture production, conduct soil surveys, develop plant varieties and livestock strains for local conditions, conduct livestock nutritional studies, and improve quality of food supply. The top priority was given to improving instruction, but special attention was devoted by staff to develop a research program for the college. In addition, thirty-three degrees were awarded to Njala faculty from U.S. universities from 1964-1973, 27 of them from University of Illinois. Nineteen Illinois staff members served as long-term advisors in Sierra Leone in areas of discipline. In addition, seven administrative personnel assisted as short-term advisors in accounting, campus planning, printing and college administration.
A civil war in the 1990's left the university's buildings in rubble. The country is now more stable and ready to begin the rebuilding process. Dr. Eugene Terry, an Illinois-trained PhD, is leading efforts to bring Illinois back to the planning table to assist in bringing Njala back to its former glory. Funding, however, is a considerable consideration. Dr. Terry is working to get government monies from Sierra Leone.
KENYA
Institutional Development for Agricultural Training (IDAT)
The University of Illinois was awarded a USAID grant to strengthen the existing Egerton University, then a well-known two-year technical development institution located north of Nairobi in Kenya, into a four-year university, in 1987. The project included four distinct goals: curriculum development and evaluation, administrative and management improvement, faculty and staff development and educational materials, research and outreach. The ultimate goal at the end of the project was to build a permanent institutional relationship between UIUC and Egerton.
Dr. Carolyn Sands spent two years in Kenya initiating and compiling data for the human resource skill gap study in collaboration with Dr. Ongondo, head of the agricultural education department at Egerton. The final report, compiled in Urbana, was used to assist in development of curriculum that would match industry needs, as well as locate appropriate faculty for areas of need.
Fifty-one microcomputers were purchased through the project to computerize the campus at Egerton. Management of student records, course registration, and development of a computer lab were all established as a result of the IDAT project. In addition, a computer support specialist was hired in Kenya and brought to the U.S. for training at UIUC, and all staff at Egerton were provided computer training by U.S. faculty.
Thirty-four Egerton faculty were brought to the U.S. for advanced degree programs at UIUC and 3 other universities. The faculty were trained in areas such as rural sociology, meat science, agricultural education, food science, agromony and agricultural economics. The project covered tuition and living expenses for the participants while obtaining their degrees.
UIUC librarians worked with Egerton faculty to develop a library development plan for the university. Through the program, more than $37,000 in books were purchased and shipped to Egerton. In addition, more than two tons of donated books by UIUC faculty were assembled and shipped to form the library on Egerton's campus.
In addition, 13 U.S. faculty were selected to spend one-year sabbaticals at Egerton to lecture and initiate joint research collaborations between their respective universities.
IDAT ended after a four-year grant period expired. "Kenyans were painfully aware of the importance of higher education, and understood the pressure to create higher education opportunities for its people," said Dr. Sands. "The IDAT project brought Egerton University to a status where it could provide that service for Kenyans."
IVORY COAST
Ivory Coast Ministry of Agriculture, Human Resource Development Project
The government of the Ivory Coast called on UIUC in the early 1980s to assist them with training of ministry of agriculture staff in intensive advanced degree programs in order to build credibility of U.S. master's degree programs.
Through this project, 56 ministry employees were brought to approximately 20 U.S. universities to complete degrees in animal science, forestry, statistics, economics, food science and agronomy. All were first enrolled in the UIUC semester-long Intensive English Institute before beginning their degree programs.
PAKISTAN
Transformation and Integration of the Provincial Agricultural Network (TIPAN) project at the Northwest Frontier Province Agricultural University, Peshawar
The Zambia experience proved that a U of I/Southern Illinois University partnership worked and plans were made to apply the same institution-building concept in Pakistan. In 1984, the project began in the field with a mixture of between 4 and 8 SIU and U of I faculty on the ground.
Personnel sharing was conducted in the same manner as Zambia, with 60 percent of the workforce coming from U of I and 40 percent coming from SIU. The history of the university was small. Colorado State University led a project in the 1960s and 1970s to build infrastructure and initiate the college. The joint U of I/SIU project, begun some 10 years later, was designed to grow the university into a regional university through human resource development. "Through the project, 215 faculty and research scientists were trained in advanced degree programs at 35 geographically disbursed U.S. universities, and 500,000 square feet of classroom, laboratory, office and library space was constructed to house more than 2400 students," said John Santas, then International Programs and Studies coordinator in the College of Agriculture for the University of Illinois. When the project ended in 1994, 75 percent of the faculty were trained in the U.S. and Europe.
To this date, the NWFPAU still credits the U of I/SIU presence at the university to be a factor in its development. Oval Myers, project leader at NWFPAU (1991- 1994) noted that through the involvement of the university in capacity building, the university grew to more than 1200 students. Unfortunately the project ended some 5 years early in 1994 due to the funding limitation by the Pressler Amendment.
In 2003 -- nine years after the door was locked on the NWFPAU program, the University of Illinois and SIU again reached out to the Pakistanis, but to this time ask for assistance with a developing project in human resource training in Afghanistan. NWFPAU serves as the host training institution in a program designed to train Afghan lecturers and faculty in areas such as horticulture, irrigation, food preservation, agriculture economics and crop science.
"In 2003, we could say that the NWFPAU was in better shape than when we left it in 1994 -- we can say that of few institution building efforts that have been undertaken," said Myers.
AFGHANISTAN
Balkh Project
The Association Liaison Office for University Cooperation in Development (ALO) selected SIUC and UIUC to begin the task of fortifying the education of the faculty at Balkh University Faculty of Agriculture in Mazar-e-Sharif. The Balkh program will not only again pair Southern Illinois University in Carbondale with the UIUC but also includes the NWFPAU to assist in developing knowledge, adopt more modern teaching skills, and increase resource materials.
Three and four member teams are being sent to Afghanistan to assess physical and curriculum needs at the college, and work to establish research farms in the country. Of the 15 faculty members, only four have master's degrees. The Faculty of Agriculture, which enrolled just over 200 students in 2005 now has over 600 students, is outpacing its growth of experienced faculty and has serious space limitations.
The two universities are cooperating with the Northwest Frontier Province Agricultural University in Peshawar, Pakistan to develop training programs. In addition, new computers and printers, and reference materials have also been purchased in-country or shipped to Balkh University.
The one-year project has been well received by the Balkh University faculty. The needs assessment will direct further activities during the next months.
EGYPT
AERI Linkage Project
The U of I, along with the Midwest Universities Consortium for International Development (MUCIA), got involved in the Agricultural Export for Rural Income (AERI) project in 2004 to impact low income farmers in the eight Upper Egypt governances. The goal of the project is a "train-the-trainer" concept, intended to increase the production and marketing of high value crops and livestock products to improve rural income and employment. There are three major areas of focus: capacity building, public-private partnership and biotech research all in Upper Egypt.
As a part of the project, MUCIA faculty are working to improve the employability of agricultural graduates in horticulture, animal sciences and agriculture economics to meet the skills required by the ag industry in Egypt. A skill gap analysis, done by 250 private sector employees and 1000 recent graduates, showed that nearly all graduates lacked management skills, communication skills, knowledge of the English language and computer skills. The UIUC academic advisors then conducted course workshops to assist in reforming curriculum at four Egyptian universities to meet these needs. The UIUC faculty are also assisting in developing external advisory committees at each of the four targeted universities to continue to be able to respond to market needs.
Faculty members at these Egyptian Universities are also being U.S.-trained to assist them in developing courses and utilize interactive teaching and learning methods. To-date, 45 faculty members have completed training programs at several U.S. universities. In addition, short courses at the Egyptian universities are providing similar information along with intensive English courses. More than 200 Egyptian faculty have attended these seminars.
To encourage trained faculty and researchers to take this information to small scale producers in Egypt, the AERI project organized technical working groups to support farmer organizations and assist in developing market research and technical training. More than 22 association members, extension workers and private sector specialists have been trained through this program. In addition, 25 impact grants have been funded to assist small-scale farmers in addressing technical problems in getting crops to market.
Finally a support program to provide focused support for applied biotechnology efforts in Egypt is underway. The $1 million project includes a research grant program, leadership study tours, professional biotechnology training and increased public awareness of biotechnology products.
The project will end in September, 2007, but has been extremely well-received in Egypt. More than 110 small horticultural and livestock business associations have been organized, impacting more than 40,000 individuals.