Caricom awards High School agri video winners

…‘Youth important to achieving food security goals’ – Caricom ASG (ag)

As the Caribbean community (Caricom) works to achieve its 25 by 2025 regional food and nutrition security goals, it recently highlighted that the region’s youths play a crucial role in seeing this plan succeed.
On Tuesday, Caricom hosted its High School Agriculture Video Competition 2024 awards ceremony. The competition saw participation from 43 schools across all member states, of which Georgetown High School of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Mopan Technical High School of Belize, and Pleasantville Secondary School of Trinidad and Tobago won first, second and third prizes respectively.
Dr. Wendell Samuel, Senior Economic Adviser to the Caricom Secretary-General, and Assistant Secretary-General (ag) of the Economic Integration, Innovation and Development Directorate, congratulated the winners and indicated that their videos showed their creativity, passion, commitment to excellence, and dedication in shaping the future of agriculture in the Region.
“Your innovative videos have demonstrated the bold ideas, opportunities and solutions in agriculture that can shape a brighter, more sustainable future for the Caribbean. You are all trailblazers, and we celebrate your achievement. Well done,” Dr Samuel said.
He added that amid the region’s push to achieve its 25 by 2025 goals, youth contributions towards the development of the region’s agriculture sector would play an important role in seeing the highly ambitious plan come into fruition.
“The Caribbean Community (Caricom) has made it a priority to achieve the 25 by 2025 regional food and nutrition security goals, which are focused on enhancing food security, increasing the sustainability of our food systems, and promoting resilience across our Region. We know that we cannot reach these ambitious goals without the creativity, innovation, and the energy of young people like you. You are not just the future of agriculture; you are the present,” he declared.
Echoing similar sentiments was Caricom Deputy Program Manager for Agriculture and Agro-Industrial Development, Dr Milagro Matus, who highlighted that the competition would serve as a platform for youths across the region to brainstorm and present innovative ideas that would significantly contribute to the Region’s food security agenda.
“This initiative has proven to be a powerful platform for engaging our youth in the critical conversation about the future of agriculture and food security in the Caribbean…The participation and creativity displayed by all the students truly highlights the vital role that young people play in helping us meet the 25 by 2025 food security goals. Young people, your innovative ideas and solutions will be essential in transforming our agricultural systems and making them more sustainable and resilient for the future,” she declared.
Underscoring that the average age of farmers in the Region is between 50 and 60 years, Beverly Best,Director of External and Institutional Relations at the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), highlighted that the competition is part of ongoing efforts to make the agriculture sector more appealing to the younger generation.
“Regardless of the root causes, it is undeniable that, comparatively, the sector is not deemed as attractive to our young people to pursue as a viable career or profession. The Caricom Youth in Agriculture High School Video Competition 2024 is therefore seen as one of the attempts to harness creativity that will heighten the attractiveness of the sector; and in this regard, we welcome the partnership of Caricom with IICA to bring this competition to fruition,” she said.
“IICA believes that by actively engaging with the youth, our Caribbean region will be better equipped to achieve the objectives of the 25 by 25 Food Security Initiative, which really focuses on revitalizing our local economies, driving innovation and employment, promoting entrepreneurship, enhance the adoption of new technologies, among others; all geared towards increasing agricultural productivity, sustainability and resilience,” Best explained.
The initiative, which was launched late last year by the Caribbean Community (Caricom) Secretariat in collaboration with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), aims to raise awareness and showcase successful agriculture production programmes that are being led by high school students throughout Caricom.
It also hopes to educate young people about the significance of agriculture to food security, sustainability, and economic development; showcase innovations, techniques, and ideas that make the field exciting and impactful; promote sustainable agricultural practices, and inspire participants to advocate for and implement these practices in their communities; and stimulate interest in agriculture as a successful career option or business opportunity.