By Joseph O. Sayon
As part of efforts to encourage young Liberians venture into agriculture, the Farmer Union Network of Liberia (FUN) has begun the training of dozens of young farmers in various aspects of agriculture including aquaculture and livestock production.
On Wednesday, June 19, 2019, FUN held a one day intensive capacity building training for 23-young farmers drawn from the 15-Counties of Liberia.
The young farmers who attended the training have been admitted in the youth college of the Farmer Union Network of Liberia with the aim of promoting and encouraging more young people take interest in various aspects of agriculture.
FUN President Josephine Francis says FUN’s engagement with the youth is in response to a Global call to action that encourages the inclusion and support of young farmers to reduce unemployment and create incentives for themselves.
Madam Francis said the whole world has been realized that agriculture is the strongest foundation for jobs creation and empower the estimated one billion young people in rural communities, thus reducing food insecurity.
She wants government tailor more support to youth in agriculture and emphasized the importance for Government to respect the Maputo and Malabo declarations by allotting ten percent of the National budget to agriculture. The allotment of the 10% in the National budget would help improve agriculture activities in Liberia.
Madam Francis urged Government to put into place program that would attract more and more young people to the agriculture sector. “The sector is big enough to absorb more and more young people and reduce unemployment”.
She said FUN is poised to take some youth farmers from Liberia to Senegal and Mali to join their colleagues from the sub-region to write their own declaration that would be later submitted to their respective government for consideration.
Madam Francis said unlike Liberia, young farmers from the sub-region have too many success stories regarding what they are doing in the agricultural sector.
“If we build the infrastructures and make agriculture attractive in rural communities, young people will not leave those communities to come to the Cities in search of jobs”.
The National Coordinator of Farmer Union Network of Liberia Julius Bass said the organization will remain engage with various stakeholders including the Government to improve agriculture sector.
Mr Bass noted that the young people of Liberia are key to improving the sector and that the Network will rally them to ensure efficiency and mass food production.
A facilitator at the capacity building training program, Mandela Hinneh emphasized the need for private sector actors to invest in the aquaculture sector of Liberia.
Mr. Hinneh, the Head of the Aquaculture and Inland Fishery Unit at the Central Agriculture Research Institute, described the aquaculture sector as a billion dollars industry that serves as means of providing fish protein to people.
He encouraged young people to venture into the sector and called on government to initiate loan program that would attract more young farmers to the sector.
Mr. Hinneh, a fish nutritionist, said aquaculture is important to developing the agriculture sector and reduce unemployment.
Miss Marie Kontoe, the first vice president of the youth college of the Farmer Union Network of Liberia,said she prepare and willing to work along with young farmers and other young people in Liberia to enhance agriculture activities across the Country.
Miss Kontoe encouraged the young people of Liberia not to see themselves as lability to society rather to consider agriculture as the option of transforming their lives and the lives of their families.
You don’t have to get million dollars before you go into agriculture, you can start with chicken, goat and other cash crops”.
The second vice president urged young people to adopt the culture of farming or agriculture in general.
Mr. George said he will use his position to motivate young Liberians to go into agriculture and commended the farmer Union Network of Liberia for the training.
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