Farming should be made more attractive to young people, the East African Community has said.The EAC deputy secretary general-in-charge of productive and social sectors, Jesca Eriyo, said neglect of the sector by the region’s youths was opening it up to adverse competition from the South African development community and the common market for Eastern and Southern Africa.
Farming should be made more attractive to young people, the East African Community has said.
The EAC deputy secretary general-in-charge of productive and social sectors, Jesca Eriyo, said neglect of the sector by the region’s youths was opening it up to adverse competition from the South African development community and the common market for Eastern and Southern Africa.
Addressing a convention in Nairobi aimed at enhancing the capacity of the EAC to engage in upcoming world trade organisation discussions, Eriyo said member countries need to interest their younger citizens in the industry.
“They have abandoned farming to old people. Some think it is no longer profitable. If we must, let us make it sexier for them,” she said. Due to climate change, she said, the agriculture and trade sector has gone through much destruction, pests and diseases, and weather unpredictability.
“Such unfortunate events have led to food insecurity and even trade distortions. However, trade can be a tool to mitigate food crises and contribute to sustainable social and economic development of the region,” she said. Agro-industrial development, she said, remains high on the EAC’s development agendas.
“Just last week, we held a very successful first EAC manufacturing summit during which agro-processing was very high on the agenda. Dealing with post harvest loses and quality products that meet the high expectation of the market requires increased investment in value addition,” she said.
Eriyo said the EAC is also working on addressing aflatoxin contamination which is also related to climate change and affecting the proper drying of grains, their storage and transportation.
The convention was organised by the Consumer Unity & Trust Society in collaboration with EAC under a four-year project titled “Promoting Agriculture-Trade-Climate Linkages in the East African Community with funding from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.
The two-day meeting was attended by ministries and stakeholders in the East African Affairs, trade, agriculture, climate change and environment sectors.