| Azlan Othman |
THE recent four-day Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT) ‘Agriculture Entrepreneurs Exposure Programme for Youths through Contract Farming’ course ended yesterday with a presentation of certificates to the participants.
Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism Dr Haji Abdul Manaf bin Haji Metussin presented the certificates.
The course was to attract more youths into the farming sector and increase their involvement in contract farming to increase agricultural produce in the country to a level at which exporting to overseas markets is possible.
The programme is expected to achieve the ministry’s objectives of producing committed and progressive youth entrepreneurs, capable of achieving high productivity to contribute towards increasing Brunei’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the agricultural sector in the near future.
The course was held over two sessions: the first from January 15 – 18, 2018 with a total of 13 participants, while the second session ran from January 29 to February 1, 2018 with 17 participants.
Of this, 19 participants who visited all farms (as prescribed in the course schedule) each received their ‘Agriculture Entrepreneurs Exposure Programme for Youths through Contract Farming’ certificates.
Also present during the ceremony were Director of Agriculture and Agrifood Hajah Aidah binti Haji Mohd Hanifah, heads of departments under the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, and senior officers from the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood.
The programme is one of the ministry’s initiatives made in support of the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood’s Strategic Plan for 2016 – 2020. It aims to heighten awareness on agricultural businesses and the agriculture sector as profitable ventures, as well as open up opportunities for youth to invest in contract farming in the sector, particularly in the field of plantation industries employing high-tech systems to enhance crop yields and produce good returns.
The programme was divided into briefing sessions and agricultural farm visits. During the briefing session, an explanation on investment opportunities in the crop industry field, financial simulations for agricultural enterprises using advanced technology and application procedures for agricultural sites were presented by the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood.
Briefings by the Ministry of Finance – which discussed the procedures for registration/establishment of companies and business names – and Syarikat Gropoint Sdn Bhd, a company which has a contract farming agreement to purchase crops produced by the programme’s youth participants, were also given.
Ameenfarm Agrotech and Trading, RZ Prisma Enterprise, Econadi Agrobiz Company, DD Agrobiz, Kanglin Hydroponics Farming, Tunas Harapan Farm, and Madgrow Tech were among the agricultural farms the participants visited.
From the programme, the youth entrepreneurs were able to grasp first-hand the overall potential of the agriculture value chain, from the information and results of the discussions obtained from their farm visits, all the way to carrying out agricultural services, making use of technology, as well as the logistics and challenges faced by local entrepreneurs and how to overcome them.
In the course’s contract farming component, the youth entrepreneurs were required to set aside a certain amount of capital and focus on sustainable production and quality yields in accordance to standards set by the purchasing company, which will not only buy their produce, but also and market them.
Jefri Johari, one of the programme participants who comes from an IT education background, said that from the programme, he learnt that IT plays a key role in high-tech farming and the two go hand in hand.
“We learnt a lot through the use of drones and farming technology and we need (farms in Brunei) to adapt to this. Farm location is also very important,” he said.
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