| Ishan Ibrahim |
THE ‘Second Workshop on Facilitating Agribusiness Development in Brunei Darussalam’ was opened by the Australian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam, Nicola Rosenblum, at the Horticulture Business Centre in Rimba yesterday.
The opening event, a precursor to a four-day workshop, was also attended by Wardi bin Haji Mohammad Ali, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Ministry at the Primary Resources and Tourism.
The four-day workshop will build on the outcomes of the ‘First Workshop on Facilitating Agribusiness Development in Brunei Darussalam’ held in Bandar Seri Begawan in April 2016.
Australian Academics Professor Peter J Batt, Dr Nazrul Islam, and Dr Amin Mugera of the University of Western Australia’s (UWA) Institute of Agriculture have returned to Brunei Darussalam to share their extensive expertise with 50 participants from both the government and private sectors.
The programme has been designed to be responsive to the capacity needs and interests identified by participants and decision-makers during the April workshop.
Wardi bin Haji Mohammad Ali, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism; and Nicola Rosenblum, the Australian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam at the event. – ISHAN IBRAHIM
In her welcoming remarks at the opening, Rosenblum said that the Australian Government was pleased to support Brunei’s economic vision and mission to accelerate growth, increase productivity, sustainability and explore export markets in order to increase gross domestic product (GDP) through its support for Brunei’s Agribusiness sector.
“It is wonderful that the University of Western Australia team is able to return to Brunei to continue their dialogue with the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood and to build on the outcomes of the April workshop,” she added.
With an undergraduate degree in Horticultural Science and postgraduate qualifications in marketing, Professor Peter Batt is in a unique position to offer advice on the production, post-harvest and marketing of both fresh and processed agricultural products to institutional users and consumers. Professor Peter Batt has also led a number of rural development projects funded by the Government of Australia to assist smallholder producers in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Vietnam.
Dr Nazrul Islam is an Agricultural and Resource Economist researching on the measurement and analysis of sustainable and efficient agriculture and food production systems. An Adjunct Senior Research Fellow within UWA Institute of Agriculture, his primary research focus is on the development and application of appropriate analytical models for strategic development planning and decision making. He has worked in senior positions in a number of government, non-government and academic organisations both in Australia and overseas.
An agricultural economist and agribusiness specialist at the School of Agriculture and Resource Economics and Institute of Agriculture, University of Western Australia, Dr Amin Mugera has extensive research, teaching and training experience in farm management, rural development, and agribusiness.
His research has focused on the economics of innovation and growth in the farming sector and strategic management of agribusiness firms along the food value chain. Recently, Dr Amin Mugera has been a socio-economist for ACIAR funded project on dry land farming in Syria and Iraq.
The workshop has been funded by the Australian Government through the Australia-Asean Council (AAC). The AAC aims to enhance awareness, understanding and links between people and institutions of Australia and Asean, including Brunei Darussalam.
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