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Agriculture Reporter
IN an exciting development for the agriculture sector, the highly anticipated national young champion farmer awards are set to return between October and November this year, underlined by new technological innovations by young farmers to celebrate their success in various agricultural endeavours.
Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Development youth desk chief programmes coordinator, Mr Nickros Kajengo, told this publication that this year’s ceremony would celebrate outstanding technological innovations in the agriculture sector following the launch of innovations hubs and agriculture hubs by the President.
“The President launched innovation and agriculture hubs in all state universities. It is in those hubs where we want to see outstanding innovations in the agriculture sector such as drone technology, precision farming, data analytics, remote sensing, smart irrigation systems and more. Those outstanding youths will be profiled, identified and awarded,” said Mr Kajengo.
Mr Kajengo said the rise in production in the sector is owed to players who have taken agriculture as a noble profession, hence the rewarding for such initiatives with prizes.
“A lot has been done by the Government to upscale production, thanks to players that have taken agriculture as a noble profession and it is in this view that much is happening in the sector that calls for the appreciation of such initiatives,” he said.
Furthermore, it is through dedication, tenacity and courage by the young farmers that there is progress in the sector regardless of the effects of climate change.
“Climate change is a challenge faced by everyone and despite its negative effects, we are seeing progress in the sector, for example, in wheat, tobacco and livestock production. We owe it to the tenacity, dedication and courage of the young generation,” observed Mr Kajengo.
He also noted that regardless of economic challenges and sanctions impacting all sectors, there had been a lot of growth in the agriculture sector.
“Economic challenges and sanctions are impacting all sectors but despite that the agriculture sector has demonstrated remarkable growth, thanks to the youths’ efforts. They are the future of the country and should be supported,” he said.
The various innovations by the youths have been identified as pivotal in addressing climate change, as the Ministry prepares for the Conference of the Parties (COP28).
“As a Ministry we are part of the Paris Agreement, hence the identifying of youths’ innovations mainstreaming as a key towards addressing climate change. We are working hard to prepare for COP28, which will be held in Dubai this year,” said Mr Kajengo.
The national young champion farmer awards are an annual event launched by the President in 2019, which reward outstanding individuals in the agriculture sector in various categories such as crop and livestock production, innovation, media and information and communication technology.
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