When the eDiscussion begins on February 26 you are invited to use this space to interact with others and discuss topics that are not covered each week of the discussion.
Good Day Blythe!
Oh yes… this is the place to interact more.
Cheers,
Sarah.
waoooh 
Thank you for that.
I’m sure this will help to get more clarifications on various topics
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Hi, I am attentively waiting for the discussions!
Is someone brewing coffee here. I just can’t get the aroma yet. May be I come back later. Otherwise, how do we get young graduates interested in organic farming?
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Hi Rosemary
Most youth lack information on organic farming. Most media houses concentrate on entertainment programs rather than informational. Youth think farming is for the illiterate. They like quick money as in betting without knowing easy come easy go.
If youth can be mentored on agriculture right from primary level through university, there can be hope of change.
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I agree with you Wengo. Mentorship is the key to eradicating false mindset in among the youth.
Rosemary,
Greetings!
Thanks for the post…the question is more than what is at hand…Organic Farming is probably a small part of Farming. The Youth are not interested in the whole Farming idea because and probably see this as a very long route to financial freedom. The perceptions so created right from childhood to adulthood point at farming being backward.
For Instance, the schools that I went through at formation regarded some punishments such as digging, compound maintenance, etc, etc…So many a child that may have undergone such punishments would look at farming as akin to the punishments served whenever something wrong was done. Later in adulthood, one could expect a detest of anything to do with digging, soil …etc and yet you couldn’t do any farming without soil & dirt!
In most African Countries, the youth form a formidable part of the population…and thus, many look at Technology as the in-thing! Technology is certainly less dirty than Farming…and remember the youth detest dirt! With all the other negative perceptions about Farming and what it takes to be a farmer, the easier exit is the options just as Technology seems to promise. But you ask, can we eat mbs?!..can we eat Whatsap?! can we all be in the Tech-Arena neglecting what is the primary source of our livelihood?
Over to you Rosemary!
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This should be done from early ages when in school by both teachers and parents… The parents should show their children what is in farming especially those who earn a living from agriculture and the teachers both in rural and urban schools should stop making farming a punishment for wrong dowers at school, instead let it be part of the curriculum… maybe like a subject and let them eat what they grow. That way they may get interested but otherwise our children/youths are too impatient they want quick money!
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I agree with all above Comments but i think we as the media personnel we have double check the content and programming in our station. we have to make it as an Agenda so as to make the youth and the community at large to get clear information on organic issues .
Also there is the need for this education should start teaching from primary or at secondary schools to university.
I agree with you Wengo,farming to youth ,we have big task to change their mind set.They are crying for employment daily,but they are not ready for farming to be self employed. It’s our turn to produce programs to help them understand that organic agriculture is good opportunity for employment and food security.
Dear Rosemary and colleagues here who have contributed to this question:“How do we get young graduates interested in organic farming?”. I thank you Rosemary for the question and i thank you colleagues in the platform for your contributions to this question.
Mine is; Yes, as Denis and others said, organic farming is just a bit of the technologies that can be applied in farming for one to reap. However, challenges experienced in farming today for example issues of climate change may even affect the organic application.
So with the advancement in Information technology, graduate youth may be attracted more here than organic.
Today, if the unemployed graduate youth are also advised to use technology say, to make passion fruit juice as a way of creating jobs for themselves and they are supported and or guided on how to do it, how to access the market, the technology and others…is more attractive to them than telling them… till the ground, use a hoe, rot peels to get fertilizers and put in your garden, then when the season comes, plant passion fruits. Yes, they can plant passion fruits, but they would wish using the fastest technology and labour that better gets them to profits quickly than getting to dirt in the garden.
Anyway Rose, the graduate youth can go organic but they need extra technology to be better off in creating jobs for themselves.
I wish on Women’s Day we can have the opportunity to front Radio as the most popular mode of communication for any development agendas!
So many women are in enterprises and have really achieved! With those entrepreneur skills, can these women be approached to sponsor a farmer programme. I think it is possible…the only challenge is: my radio station’s commercial/advertising rates are just too high!!!..So what can be done here in order to hook such women enterprises to sponsor our regular farmer progarmme?
Happy Women’s Day (2018) celebrations the Women and Men here! And Happy Women’s week which is running this week…
Let us focus on the rural women and girls- being the Theme for Women’s Day this year (2018).
Cheers,
Sarah Mawerere (smawerere).
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Smawere this is good to discuss about, Nowdays women they have money more than men,because of small businesses they have. They would not miss little money they fed families and care for school needs. Moving to the business women they are doing well. But I’m seeing as they lack publicity to their products,they wait for exhibitions which happens occasionally. May be it our turn radio people to meet and discuss on how radio can be help at their entrepreneurship. We can have series of programs from production to markets of their products.
Yes Wengo thats true but, But its reality is that youth are most wanted category of farmers just because the youth is the most active one so are supposed to be on the fore front of agriculture.
Secondly Farming is business so its literate people who can do better in agriculture business for it needs record keeping and others.
so its very important to mentor these youths
Good question @Rosemary_Kowuor how about we understand why they are not interested in organic farming and which answer is maybe obvious that “farming is dirty” as per our grooming. After understanding why, am looking at getting a youth already involved in farming producing this particular radio program and maybe hearing from a fellow graduate they may get interested. That is my take.
Hey why is it that there is nobody at the cafe? Did whatsup divert people from the cafe? Anyway how is everybody?
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Hehehehehe… rehema, it is because there was no aromatic coffee to share in the cafe. No chairs, no tables, no cupboard, no cups, i can not even peep to see sugar…no kettle. But we are here at long last.
Cheers,
Sarah.
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@smawerere can you recommend a beverage I might try to warm myself up. I walked up the street to get lunch and it’s still very much winter here in Ottawa!
Dear Blythe,
Sorry, i cannot manage winter in the Western World! Ohhh…it’s March?!! Still very cold there…Hohoho …You need African Tea or black tea! It is simple-no measurements like in cappuccino, or espresso. Just boil water, put there a black tea bag, with a spoon of sugar and make a cup of the tea. Or boil milk,add water a little, let it boil, put black tea leaves in the boling milk, let it turn brown and just make yourself a cup and take while very hot like that. It is local but the best…hehehehe.