By Omotayo Edubi
The agriculture sector in Syria has boundaries appeal as a source of stable income for youth.
The lack of guidance, expert consultation, access to knowledge, training and profitable opportunities have prevented young people from engaging in agriculture.
As a result, youth’s impact on one of the cornerstones of Syria’s economy is minimal. Yet, there are opportunities to involve motivated young people in the sector to benefit from their fresh and innovative ideas.
Engaging youth in agriculture requires specialized training, access to institutional knowledge, and provision of appropriate financial services.
FAO, under its Smallholder Support Programme in Syria, is promoting innovative and entrepreneurial interventions to involve young people in the sector.
FAO has developed a program called Nabta (seedling in Arabic), which aims to encourage and assist youth in starting agricultural business.
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As part of its innovative vision, Nabta is launching a new and unique intervention dedicated to digital agriculture.
Digital agriculture is the use of technological solutions, such as mobile technologies, remote-sensing and cloud-based services to promote efficient agricultural practices, streamlining supply chains and reducing operational costs, thereby increasing profits.
Young people are more inclined to adopt technology-mediated agricultural innovations than older generations to upgrade farming practices and operations.
“Digital agriculture is a pioneer learning experience for young people in Syria, and today, youth is ready to present innovative solutions to enhance food production,” said Alfredo Impiglia, FAO Chief Technical Advisor in Syria.
This specialized intervention is the first of its kind in the country.
FAO has teamed up with Junior Chamber International (JCI) in Damascus, one of the most prominent youth non-governmental organizations.
The aim is to assist youth who have a background in farming, agricultural studies, smallholding, as well as information technology (IT) knowledge and experience to shape the future of the agriculture sector.
