Pretty Gqamile Mthiyane, originally from South Africa, is a PhD candidate in the Department of Life and Food Sciences at Niigata University, Japan, under the JICA: SDG Global Leader Program scholarship. Her research emphasizes sustainable agriculture, particularly the integration of biofertilizers and organic fertilizers to improve crop growth, and yield, and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, especially methane, in paddy fields. She holds an MSc in Agriculture (Agronomy) from the University of Zululand and has extensive academic experience as a lecturer in crop production at Mangosuthu University of Technology since 2013. Mthiyane has also worked as a research assistant at the Agricultural Research Council. She is a member of the Crop Science Society of Japan and an advisory member of the South African Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development. Mthiyane has published work on genetic innovation and sustainable practices for combating heat stress in rice cultivation. She has received grants from the Agricultural Research Council, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET: USDP), and a bursary from the Industrial Development Corporation. She has presented her research at international conferences and is passionate about contributing to global food security and climate change mitigation.
