DA to roll out internship program for young farmers  

MANILA, Philippines — With an aging workforce in the agriculture sector, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is looking to empower more young farmers and enthusiasts this year by rolling out internship opportunities and credit support for agribusiness ventures.

This will be done through its extension and training arm, Agricultural Training Institute (ATI).

ATI officer-in-charge director Remelyn Recoter said the youth is one of the focus areas of the agency this year.

“We want to entice our youth to engage in agriculture because one of the challenges of our sector is the aging population. The average age of our farmers is between 53 and 57. In five or 10 years, we will have aging farmers and fishers,” she said.

The agency is looking at possible partnerships with the governments of South Korea and Israel  for new youth internship programs.

It has existing agreements with the governments of Japan and Taiwan for internship programs for young Filipino farmers.

ATI will also promote digital agriculture, which will be part of its regular training programs to show the youth more opportunities in farming and fishing.

Meanwhile, training programs on the different segments of the agri-fishery value chain from production up to consumption will be made available to extension workers and farmer-leaders.

These include training on mechanization, processing, good manufacturing practices, food safety, and marketing.

“We will continue to support the Department of Agriculture in its efforts to ensure that there is food on the table for every Filipino,” Recoter said.

Scholarship programs are also ongoing for extension workers in the local government units (LGUs) and other institutions to professionalize their industry and for them to become more empowered to serve their fellow farmers and fishers.

Meanwhile, to ensure that farmers have access to facilities that will help them learn more agri-fishery technologies, ATI will strengthen the linkage between LGUs and its Learning Sites for Agriculture and Extension Service Providers.

Through this, training participants in the local areas will be able to use technology demonstration sites and nurseries that might not be available in their LGU.

Training and other capacity-building activities that will help address the challenges brought by the rising costs of inputs, outbreak of African Swine Fever and Avian influenza, and climate change will also be intensified this year.