PH Agriculture: Are We Now Listening To The Youth Who Have No/Little Experience?

Secretary of Agriculture William Dar was the first one I think who thought of harnessing the talents of young Filipinos into advancing PH agriculture. Searca Director Glenn B Gregorio is the latest believer I see.  

Why? The youth are the hopes of the fatherland, Jose Rizal knew studying at the Ateneo, and certainly are full of ideas!

Leander C Domingo says (“Searca Youth Camp Deals (With) Agri-Food System Challenges, Best Practices[1]” 01 July 2021, Manila Times, manilatimes.net):

The Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (Searca) conducted the first virtual youth camp to convene young professionals, agripreneurs, public servants and students who lead projects and advocate for Philippine agriculture.

Why virtual youth camp? Wide safety & coverage. The youth have factual talents that could be harnessed for their mother country. Mr Domingo says:

Searca organized the youth camp to gather youth perspectives on challenges and solutions in the agri-food system, particularly in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. The first virtual youth camp was organized by the members of the Searca Young Ambassadors Platform or Sayap under the Young Forces for Agricultural Innovation or #Y4Agri, Searca's banner youth initiative until 2025.

Image above shows Mr Gregorio (right) and Jean Rebecca Labios (left), member of Sayap, setting the tone of the youth camp during the “campfire session.”

The youth camp was organized by 15 young staff of Searca, all members of the Sayap. (Sayap is under the Young Forces for Agricultural Innovation or #Y4Agri, launched last year.) The camp was held 19 June 2021, significantly the birth of our National Hero Jose Rizal. I say that’s hero workship!

During the camp, Myka Fragata, a young farmer already, said:

As millennials, youth are naturally tech-savvy. Incorporating innovative agri-technology in learning about agri-food system principles can encourage youths to venture into the field of agriculture.

How important is agriculture to the youth? During the youth camp, Mr Gregorio said:

In agriculture, you can directly feed your family, your community and the world. The youth can contribute (to) transforming traditional ways in agri-food systems through technology and innovation.

Cherrie Atilano, Food Security Ambassador of the Department of Agriculture, said, “Food is our umbilical cord to Mother Earth. It is something that all of us, especially young people, should think about."

In the Youth Camp, this was noted:

There were challenges in engaging the youth in the agri-food system identified, which include knowledge gaps in agriculture, disconnect between agri-curriculum and realities, poor internet connectivity, mobility issues and lack of data, and fragmented or delayed interventions.

The youth camp also noted:

The use of social media as a primary communications channel to the youth, capacity-building, community immersions, peer-to-peer learning and the establishment of a young farmers community were their consensus on the best practices among the youth.

"The conversations don't stop here because we need to act on what we have discussed here; we need to take these into actionable solutions in our respective sectors," Searca youth leader Sonny Pasiona said.

Amen to all that!@517

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[1]https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/07/01/campus-press/searca-youth-camp-deals-on-agri-food-system-challenges-best-practices/1805283