By Vanessa James
KINGSTON, Jamaica, (JIS) – Minister of agriculture, fisheries and mining, Floyd Green is encouraging the youth in agriculture to utilise advancements in technology including artificial intelligence (AI) to be more efficient, productive and get better returns on their investments. The minister noted that while technological advancements do pose threats to certain jobs, food production will always require the human element.
“One of the messages that our youth must understand, as the world advances, as we look at things like artificial intelligence, as we think about the jobs that are under threat, no matter what happens in this world, we will have to eat. Even if you’re writing the programme for AI, you will have to eat. So, AI will never replace our farmers and food production,” the minister said, speaking at the Jamaica 4-H Clubs Youth In Agriculture Village on Saturday (August 1), during the 72nd staging of the Denbigh Agricultural, Industrial and Food Show in May Pen, Clarendon held under the theme ‘Growing Forward: Cultivating a Path to a Better Jamaica’.
The village serves as a strategic pipeline to guide youth toward profitable agricultural enterprises.
Minister Green emphasised that the ministry is actively working to remove barriers that often prevent young people from getting involved in agriculture. He highlighted the Rural Youth Economic Empowerment Programme (RYEEP) which is an entrepreneurial training platform organised by the Jamaica 4-H Clubs in partnership with Heart/NSTA Trust.
“Why RYEEP is working is because it takes a practical approach. It takes you where you are, it provides you with practical training, and it provides you with grant support so you can expand,” minister Green said.
Additional support provided by the Ministry is reserving land in agro-parks for young people and assisting with land preparation and agricultural inputs.
“Last year, we reserved 25 percent of our land [in agro-parks] for young people. I’m pleased to announce that we have passed that mark and last year, of all the land in the agro-park that we leased, 34 per cent of it went to youth in agriculture,” the minister announced.
A major highlight was the Youth Agritech Challenge, an initiative designed to encourage young Jamaicans to become creators, and not just consumers of agricultural technology.
The competition focused this year on climate-smart and sustainable agriculture, water management and food security. Following presentations to a panel of judges, six finalists were shortlisted to compete for a share of the $1 million cash prize.
Abena Corniffe secured the top spot, taking home $500,000, while the second and third-place winners received $300,000 and $200,000, respectively.
“We’re not trying to get our young people to just be users of the technology that already exists. We want our youth to create fit-for-purpose technology for agriculture in Jamaica. We know we have the capacity here, and we’re going to continue to incentivise our youth to get it done,” minister Green declared.
Touring the Youth in Agriculture Village, minister Green highlighted the collaborative effort of stakeholders including the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE), HEART/NSTA Trust, the Northern Caribbean University (NCU), and Knockalva Polytechnic College.