The Young Agricultural Ambassadors
New Southbound Policy (NSP) Exchange Program of Taiwan on November 19 concluded this year’s edition of the program in the Philippines participated in by a 16-man delegation that includes young farmers and agriculture students.
The program returns after three years to continue providing more opportunities for the next generation of Taiwanese agricultural specialists to engage internationally and develop their capacity to innovate.
The program was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Agriculture in 2017 where youth with expertise in farming, forestry, fisheries, and animal husbandry are selected to go on exchange visits to NSP partner- countries like the Philippines.
The Taiwan Youth Agricultural Ambassadors (TYAA) comprises 12 university students and young professionals with academic and practical experience in fields spanning fruit, rice, vegetable, and organic farming. These young people visited the Philippines from November 13 to 19 undertaking intense exchange programs with the national and international agriculture-related organizations, institutions and enterprises.
For this year, the delegation visited agencies and institutions like the International Rice Research Institute, Southeast Asia Regional Center for Graduates Study and Research in Agriculture and Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development and Central Luzon State University as well as farmers’ groups like the Tabon San Jose Farmers’ Association
The Young Agricultural Ambassadors New Southbound Policy Exchange Program was conceived to promote the NSP to encourage Taiwanese youths with expertise in farming, forestry, fisheries, and animal husbandry to engage in international affairs, putting the creativity and energy of the next generation of agricultural specialists to good use.
Overseas field visits aim to stimulate the capacity of participants to innovate and build links for agricultural cooperation between Taiwan and NSP partner countries.
The participants hail from diverse backgrounds. Their areas of expertise include fruit and vegetable cultivation, organic farming, agricultural economics, and aquaculture. This year’s young agricultural ambassadors learned about the current status of agricultural economic development and business opportunities in those countries. The participants gained insight into local farming produce market operations and marketing trends.
