By Lamarana S Jallow,
Assistant Information Officer, MoYS
About fifty young people are expected to benefit from rice agronomy training, as proposed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports. If come to reality, the training will be carried out through the Ministry’s satellite institution, National Youth Service Scheme (NYSS).
The yet to be training is noted to be delivered through a standard curriculum developed by National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI) and National Youth Service Scheme, and accredited by National Accreditation and Quality Assurance Authority (NAQAA).
Speaking during a site visit at Sapu Agricultural Camp in Central River Region South, Honorable Hadrammeh Sidibeh, Minister of Youth and Sports, described young people as the cream of the society who need motivation and encouragement to grow.
He stated that his Ministry’s Vision is to make sure that young people are engage in meaningful and sustainable development.
“We intend to minimise the rural-urban migration because if young people in the rural areas are not engage, ultimately they would come to the urban areas to engage in illegal migration,” he explained.
The Minister revealed that his Ministry will be responsible for the up-keep, as well as tuition fees for all the 50 beneficiaries.
He encouraged young people to venture into agriculture, noting that it is the backbone of the country, and the only viable food self-sufficiency scheme.
Emmanuel Mendy, Executive Director of National Youth Service Scheme (NYSS) said his office engages in the processes of training young people on rice agronomy production in Sapu for the past four years. This, he revealed, has motivated his office to inspire his line Ministry to expand the project to a higher level.
“Young people should be responsible for the development of the country; it cannot move without the involvement of youth in agriculture,’’ he asserted.
Agriculture, he went on, is a big employer and if young people are involve, it will help reduce youth unemployment in the country.
Momodou Sambou, the station manager at the National Agricultural Research Institute in Sapu thanked NYSS through its line Ministry for reintroducing the project.
Other speakers were Haddy Joof and Borry Fatty, who were both NYSS recruits in 2000. They both called on young people to venture into rice agronomy, pointing out that not all are meant for the office.