Authorities note rising number of youths going to agriculture

ILOILO CITY - Agriculture officials yesterday said more and more people of the younger generation are becoming aware of the importance of agriculture in their lives and the country, citing the recent increase in the number of enrollees in agriculture courses in several universities in the city.

Department of Agriculture-6 executive director Larry Nacionales said one of the most critical issues is that the farmers in the country are getting older, and this situation threatens the agriculture sector if the younger people would be disinterested of agriculture.

The Bureau of Agricultural Statistics said agriculture and fishery sectors contribute 17 percent to gross domestic product while providing food for the 100 million (July 2011 estimate) Filipinos. "We need a successor group to sustain agriculture," Nacionales said.

Western Visayas, being an agriculture region, needs to rekindle the interest of the young people in agriculture so they could replace the ageing farmers. Nacionales however said that, the past five years, the number of students in agriculture courses dropped but, just recently, the number shot up again.

According to Dr. Reynaldo Dusaran, dean of the Central Philippine University's College of Agriculture, Resources and Environmental Sciences, a 300 percent increase of students enrolling in agriculture courses was recorded last June.

Dusaran said information dissemination and campaign on the practice of organic farming and the research and studies the school has been conducting may have aroused the interest of students on agriculture.

Nacionales also said the schools have implemented programs, like Gulayan sa Paaralan, which drew the interest of the school children in farming.

Meanwhile, agriculturists observed that farmers now are becoming more dependent on inorganic products and harmful pesticides/herbicides in their farms. Dr. Teodoro Solsoloy, assistant director of the Bureau of Agricultural Research said inorganic fertilizers, besides being expensive, have also effects on soil and the environment.

This prompted the DA to focus on promoting organic farming to restore the lost soil nutrients and the ecology. Last year, the national government has allocated P900 million distributed differently for organic agriculture, said Solsoloy. Of the amount, P150 million was set aside for research and development in promoting organic agriculture, he said.

"We promote organic farming by showing the advantages and disadvantages so the farmers will know. Some may be hesitant to adapt organic farming because, at the start, their yield will really be low but once the soil is sustainable after using organic products, slowly they will see stabilization," Solsoloy said.

The DA and the Central Philippine University the other day opened their 1st Regional Organic Agricultural Research Fair and Exhibits held at the CPU campus in Jaro, Iloilo City.

DA and CPU have signed a memorandum of agreement in support of the Agri-Pinoy Program through advocacy campaigns especially in promoting organic farming in Western Visayas. A best example of public-private partnership, the week-long event aims to promote public awareness and enthusiasm on organic agriculture.

A variety of products from food, handicrafts, academic, horticulture, aquaculture, among others that are produced through organic farming are now on exhibit and are open to the public until Friday.

Dr. Joyce Wendam, regional technical of DA for Planning, Research and Extension, said that having the university as partner really helped a lot especially in augmenting manpower and carrying their activities even in tight budget.

The DA and CPU have already conducted several seminars and trainings to farmers, providing the latter with knowledge and skills in organic farming. "Aside from teaching them good agricultural practices, we also want to provide them with nutritious and adequate food through organic agriculture," Wendam added.— (FREEMAN)