Miss. delegation in Uzbekistan

JACKSON, Miss. - Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant is leading a trade mission in Uzbekistan this week to try to strengthen connections between the Magnolia State and the central Asian country. A spokesperson for the governor, Bobby Morgan, told The Associated Press on May 16 that the governor and others left last Sunday and will return May 18. The delegation includes Mississippi National Guard (MNG) Adjutant Gen. Durr Boyles, Mississippi Development Authority director Glenn McCullough, and Julie Jordan, Mississippi State University's vice president for international programs. The MNG and Uzbekistan’s military have been jointly training for six years in a state partnership program. MSU and Uzbekistan have had a partnership for about five years, according to MSU spokesperson Sid Salter. In February, MSU established a collaboration agreement with Tashkent State Agrarian University in Uzbekistan, focusing on agriculture issues, including irrigation and water management in horticulture. A Uzbekistan delegation has toured the Starkville campus. MSU’s primary interest in forming the international partnership is to improve global food security and alleviate hunger, Salter said. (Source: The AP 05/16/19)