BY DELISA THWALA
MBABANE – The youth has come in numbers to be part of the first-ever Youth in Agriculture Indaba which is currently ongoing at Mavuso Trade and Exhibition Centre.
This is according to UNDP Eswatini, who shared on their social media platforms that over 500 youth delegates are discussing innovative ways of using technology in agriculture to support youth livelihoods and stimulate economic growth at the 2-day Youth in Agriculture Indaba.
This is an event UNDP Eswatini, in partnership with UN Agencies, supports. Under the Eswatini Youth Empowerment Programme, UNDP Eswatini has partnered with FAO Eswatini to implement a project to support young smallholder farmers with innovative green technologies to produce high-value crops and link them to markets.
“I want to acknowledge proposals for a partnership led by FAO and UNDP to implement a programme encouraging youth participation in agriculture. I’m informed that the programme will be rolled out in the third quarter of 2023,” said the representative of the UN Eswatini Resident Coordinator, Margaret Tembe.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Agriculture Jabulani Mabuza, said as a ministry they have high hopes for the Summit and the results it should bear.
“We trust that the outcomes of this summit will further detail interventions and approaches to attract more youth participation in the agriculture and food industries,” said Mabuza. He further said they were drawing many lessons from principles that are pillars for the achievement of the SDGs, one of which is inclusiveness, hence their deliberate efforts towards encouraging and facilitating youth participation in all the sectors of the economy.
