Jinja: The third edition of the National Agriculture Education Show kicked off Monday, June 24, 2024, at the renowned Jinja’s show ground located at the Source of the Nile.
The annual agricultural initiative aiming to educate the young people in agriculture is organized by the Uganda National Farmer’s Federation (UNFFE), an umbrella body that brings together farmers across the country.
Mr Nelson Tukundane, the communications officer of UNFFE, told the media on Monday that this year’s education exhibition is on the theme “Young innovations, transforming agriculture for national prosperity.”
“We want our people to be the driving force of agriculture. We (young people) are largely 75 (seventy-five) per cent of the population, and we know the value of agriculture to our GDP as the country. If the young generation is not involved in agriculture, things will not move on well,” said Mr Tukundane.
He mentioned that the education show aims to empower young people to identify skills that would be beneficial to the agricultural sector. The one-week exhibition event shall run until Friday, June 29, 2024.
“Today is the first day of the edition. We are still setting up, but we have so far received schools from various Mbarara Kaberamaido, Gulu, and others. All these schools are here, and they have come with their exhibit,” he highlighted.
Mr Tukundane further informed that the full week shall feature several activities and programs including trainings sessions, dialogues on different topics like climate change, gender, youths in agriculture among others which shall be free for students to showcase their skills.
According to him, the first lady and also the minister for education and sports, Janet Kataha Museveni sis expected to preside over the official launch of the show on Wednesday.
“Besides the first lady, we also expect different dignitaries from the ministry of agriculture, commissioners, heads of different agencies and stakeholders, among others,” he said.
Various agricultural specialists with significant modern knowledge in farming are in the show to showcase their expertise to the school going children who would the successful farmers of the future and promote the country’s agricultural sector.
Tukundane mobilizes schools across the country to embrace this year’s edition which is emphasizning the need to involve the young generation in the sensitive sector, noting that they are the potential transformers of the agriculture for the thriving-economic well-being of the country.
“The new curriculum actually has it all. Agriculture is the priority in it. This, therefore, goes to schools that for effective implementation of the new curriculum, let us embrace this show to learn interesting features in agriculture,” he said.
