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Monday, February 13, 2012

Young farmers to be trained as entreps




Selected young farmers across the country are bound for a training in Japan to be business entrepreneurs after they complete a 75-day pre-departure orientation course under the Young Filipino Farmers Training Program (YFFTP). A part of the pre-departure training was conducted at the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Jan. 30-Feb 3.

The PhilRice training, the second activity in the pre-departure orientation course, covered operating farm machines from handling land preparation to post-production and safety tips.

 “At the end of the training, we are hopeful that the participants will be youth farmer leaders in promoting agriculture ventures to their fellow youth and farmers now that the interest in investing in agriculture has gone down,” Lea dR. Abaoag, Technology Management Services head of PhilRice, said.

A bilateral agreement with the Japan Agricultural Exchange Council and Japan Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, YFFTP aims to encourage young graduates of agriculture, fisheries, and business courses, and out-of-school youth to venture into agribusiness and become successful Filipino entrepreneurs.

Participants, aged 22-27 years old, regard the upcoming 11-month training in Japan as an opportunity to show to their fellow youth that farming can be a profitable business.

“I joined the program because it is a chance for me, an out-of-school youth, to encourage young adults to engage in farming because it has a bright future,” Janyday Relampagos, 22, said.

A son of a farmer from Zamboanga del Sur, Relampagos said he will take BS in Agriculture while maintaining a farm to support his studies after he comes back from the training in Japan.

Meanwhile, 26-year-old Dennis Akinlay Dura from Bukidnon, a son of corn farmer, said he will continue his studies on Agricultural Economics to help his father in efficiently managing their farm and in increasing farm income.

Relampagos and Dura are among the 13 YFFTP participants, mostly graduates of agriculture courses and out-of-school youth, who passed the screening administered nationwide by the National Agricultural and Fisheries Council.


The pre-departure orientation course, which will end on April 10,  covers training on rice, vegetable, swine, and cattle production; farm business planning; farm mechanization; computer literacy; courses on Nihongo and basic Japanese culture and tradition; and seminars on values formation and leadership.

DA-PhilRice is a government-owned and –controlled corporation that aims at developing high-yielding, cost-reducing, and environment-friendly technologies so farmers can produce enough rice for all Filipinos.

For more information, please visit or contact DA-PhilRice at Maligaya, Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija with telephone number (044) 456-0285 loc 511/512 or any PhilRice station near you. You may also text your questions to 0920-911-1398.

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