By Moses J. Dawoe
-Southeast Correspondent
The College of Agriculture and Food Sciences at the William V.S. Tubman University in Harper, Maryland County has completed its first successful farming experiment on savanna land rice farming to enhance the practical skills of students at the university.
The government’s second state-run university has initiated an agricultural program through its dean, Larry C. Hwang, called the “Demonstration Site” project.
Dr. Hwang explained that the experiment aimed to determine whether lowland rice and upland could grow in savanna grasslands and whether upland rice could thrive in the same environment.
During an interview on February 27, 2025, Hwang stated that many people living in savanna regions have always believed it is impossible to grow rice there.
This skepticism motivated him to test the land with students from the College of Agriculture and Food Sciences and the College of Engineering.
According to him, the Ministry of Agriculture donated farming equipment to the university to support the project.
Through the “Demonstration Site” initiative, the university planted both lowland and upland rice in the savanna.
He further emphasized that the seeds used for the experiment were donated by the people of Barrobo, allowing the university to cultivate 3.5 hectares of land as a starting point.
Hwang explained that, in the past, students engaged in agricultural activities, but these were primarily theoretical and thesis-based.
Previous experiments were conducted on small plots, typically 40 feet by 40 feet or sometimes 50 feet by 50 feet, to observe whether rice could grow in swampy land.
The dean of the College of Agriculture at William V.S. Tubman University highlighted that the administration has been supportive of the experiment.
He also used the occasion to call on NGOs to support further research on growing rice in savanna regions through irrigation methods, without the need for extensive bush clearing.
Hwang noted that rice planting began on November 7, 2024, and the university is now harvesting the crops on the school’s main campus.
Furthermore, he mentioned that the university has 1,000 hectares of farmland in both Barrobo and Rock Town, dedicated to agricultural productivity, with 30 hectares covered with oil palm in Barrobo District.
