University of Wisconsin-River Falls/Universidad Nacional Agraria
Country:
Nicaragua
Award Date:
2003
Award Amount:
$103,377.00
Cost Share:
$49,037.00
Other Partners:
Wisconsin/Nicaragua Partners of the Americas; University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension Service
This partnership is augmenting the agricultural and pedagogical knowledge of the Universidad Nacional Agraria (UNA) faculty by establishing mentoring relationships with University of Wisconsin-River Falls (UWRF) faculty. Bolstering the institutional capacity of UNA, the only public agricultural university in Nicaragua, promises to significantly benefit the country’s predominantly agriculture-based economy. To date, six UNA faculty members have visited UWRF for four- to eight-week periods to learn more about grant writing, agricultural marketing, agricultural financial management, animal nutrition, and soil and water management. Through cost savings and other leveraged funds, the partnership will send nine UWRF faculty to UNA rather than the originally anticipated five. The partnership also continues to make significant progress on a farm business simulator software program to be used as a teaching tool at UNA. This collaboration has encouraged UNA to embrace the U.S. land-grant educational model.