The Food Agriculture Natural Resources Policies Network (FANRPAN) Annual Regional Food Security Policy Dialogue

Advocating for the Active Engagement of the Youth in the Agricultural Value Chain

Secretariat of the Pacific Community Land Resources Division (SPC LRD) PAFPNet

Youth in Agriculture Initiative

PAFPNet The Pacific Agriculture and Forestry Policy Network

(PAFPNet) is a network of members from different organization and is owned by all the members.

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community acts as the secretariat.

Supported by CTA. The aim of the network is to facilitate communication,

information dissemination, capacity building and enhance awareness of issues related to agriculture and forestry policy.

Promotes open and constructive dialogue and encourages information exchange and activity coordination.

CHALLENGES FACING YOUTHS IN THE PACIFIC

1. Rural – Urban Migration

2. Youth Unemployment

3. ‘Hierarchical village structure’

- where very little importance is given to the opinions of youth!!

- Access to Land

PACIFIC YOUTH IN AGRICULTURE STRATEGY 2011-2015

• The Strategy was created in the sense of bringing interest on Agriculture to the Youths of the Pacific for Employment reasons and in the process we can also help to Improve Food Security and Livelihood Opportunities in our rural communities and to Reduce pressure on urban areas.

CASE STUDIES

1. Mainstreaming of Rural Development Innovations (MORDI) Programme under the Foundation of the Peoples of the South Pacific International.

- Deals with youths in Rural areas in the Pacific region.

- Follows participatory approaches .

- In most Pacific Islands – hierarchical village structure : very little importance given to the opinions of youths and Access to Land.

- With much hard work from the MORDI team the results have been clearer in Communities esp. in Vanua Levu in Fiji.

2. The Marist Training Centre in Tutu, Taveuni, Fiji.

- Designed in a way to attract young men and women to be independent and to be innovative at the same time.

- The agenda or the syllabus comes from the people in their home situation.

- Entrance requirement for Tutu college

- Quote from the Principal of Tutu college, Father McVery

“It is an experimental process. People learn through experience. The Truths we live by are ones we discover for ourselves, not what others tells us. The learner is in charge of the process. The learner sets the agenda. The learner initially begins with felt needs and must be led to discover for him or herself the real needs. It is a process of empowerment.”

3. Island Food Community in Pohnpei – schools developed a song about the ‘Banana Varieties’

4. FRIEND - ‘Foundation of Rural Integrated Enterprise and Development initiative “To sow seeds of improved food security in low income areas”

5. Tonga National Youth Congress (TNYC) – Future Organic Famers of Tonga

The Pacific Youth in Agriculture Facebook forum – was created to illustrate new/ social media being used to promote Agriculture for the Pacific youths.

Pacific Youth in Agriculture Essay Competition

OTHER INITIATIVES

“Agriculture is not an occupation that comes with a desk, PC and a comfortable chair. No, agriculture is so much better than this. It comes with a connection – to our ancestors, to the earth, and most importantly and too often overlooked, to the very core of human survival – EATING. Humans can survive without a laptop, but we cannot survive without food.

Advice: Do not think of farming only as a money earner. Agriculture is much more than this, and it’s this understanding that will help young farmers through the tough times. We now live in a cash economy, and we need income, but as a farmer you are contributing so much more. Agriculture is instrumental in keeping our culture alive, in addressing climate change issues, health issues and in preserving the environment.”

Essay Winner: Alana Tukuniu from Niue (Recently published in the ‘New Agriculturalist”)

YOUTH IN AGRICULTURE

• As part of the Facilitating Agricultural Commodity Trade (FACT) youth activities in 2010 - awards for agriculture that went to young farmers.

• One way to arouse an interest in agriculture among youths is to engage and support them in these activities from an early age.

Supporting Youths at an early age – SPC LRD has been putting a lot of efforts into this by involving youths from the primary school levels. Inspired by the Pacific Youth in Ag Strategy.

“What value do we place on possessions, when they are merely given to us? Not nearly as much as those for which we will always remember how hard we worked for, and how we laboured in

order to achieve them. The most effective support will always be ourselves, as individuals and together as a community. Why? Because in the end it will be in our future in which we need

to survive, and our culture which we need to preserve.” Alana Tukuniu, Niue.

Vinaka Vakalevu!