On 19 February 2026 at NAETC, Lt. Sorawud Preededilok, Minister attached to Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA), and Mr. Shunsuke Sakudo, Chief Representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Thailand Office, precied over the closing ceremony and presented certificate to the participants of the Third Country Training Programme (TCTP) on Rice Production Technologies for Food Security and Sustainability of African Countries under the Project of Coalition for African Rice Development (CARD) at the National Agricultural Extension and Training Center (NAETC). On this occasion, Asst.Prof.Dr. Sukanya Rattanatabtimtong, Assistant to the President for Research, Academic Services, and International Affairs, Kasetsart University, Kamphaeng Saen Campus, also presented and delivered the closing remarks.

The training programme was conducted from 14 January to 20 February 2026 under the project on enhancing rice productivity for member countries of the Coalition for African Rice Development (CARD), under the framework of Thailand–Japan technical cooperation for JFY 2025. The programme was implemented by the National Agricultural Extension and Training Center (NAETC), Kasetsart University, Kamphaeng Saen Campus.

The programme brought together 13 participants from eight African countries in the CARD francophone group, namely Burkina Faso, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, and Senegal. The training programme aimed to transfer knowledge, experience, and technological advancements in rice productivity from Thailand, with a view to improving the quality and development of rice production and strengthening food security and food stability in African countries.