Students express interest in agriculture
Students from Wesley College in Apia, Samoa completed their school garden project. The students have obtained gardening equipment using vouchers they won at a competition, which was part of the World Food Day 2015 celebrations.
The competition provided an opportunity for the students to showcase projects and to provide an incentive to continue with agriculture in their studies and possibly as a career.
“We are very happy to receive the gardening equipment”. Said Wesley School Principal, Rev. Amosa Tapua’i.
Agricultural Science teacher, Mr Fraser Taitin said 734 students attend Wesley College. “There are 45 students in Year 12 and 16 students in Year 13 studying Agricultural Science”, said Mr Taitin. “These students are really interested in Agriculture. The equipment was used for digging and cultivating the soil in preparation for a new supply of crops”.
The vouchers were supplied by FAO through the UN Youth Employment Programme.
ONE UN Youth Programme
FAO is one of five UN agencies that are supporting the Government of Samoa, through the Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development to reduce youth unemployment. The other agencies are United Nations Development Programme, International Labour Organization, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and United Nations Volunteers.
The Ministry and the UN agencies will partner with both private sector and civil society organisations to provide this range of services to youth.
The programme activities will include support to the Samoa National Youth Council to establish a ‘Youth Employment Network’ that will provide information and basic employment services to facilitate successful entry to the labour market.
The programme has been designed with the specific objective of assisting young women and men to develop the knowledge and skills needed to enter the labour market, and to provide them with the additional supporting services needed to secure employment opportunities in either waged employment or in small business development.
The International Labour Organization Youth Employment Programme provides assistance to countries in developing efforts on youth employment.