Region 10’s youth participate in DA’s Young Farmers Challenge. 

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – To engage more youth in agriculture, the Department of Agriculture – Regional Field Office 10 (DA-RFO 10) through the Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division (AMAD) conducts the Young Farmers Challenge (YFC) Program Start-Up Search for Outstanding Business Model Canvas at the Provincial Level for FY 2023 from July 26-28, 2023, in this city.

DA-10 Regional Executive Director Carlene C. Collado said that the YFC program, specifically its start-up portfolio, aims to provide financial grant assistance for the youth who are interested to venture into a new or start-up agri-fishery enterprise.

He added that through such initiative, the department can support young farmers and fishers to actively take part in food security, agricultural development, and modernization by encouraging them to engage in activities in agriculture, agribusiness and agripreneurship as catalysts for sustainable development.

Some 34 participants aged from 18 to 30 years old, consisting of 31 individuals and 3 groups regionwide participated, where they presented their respective BMCs.

Represented were the provinces of Misamis Occidental, Lanao del Norte, Bukidnon and Misamis Oriental, and the cities of Iligan and CdeO.

The presentations were evaluated by a panel of provincial judges based on the innovativeness, viability, and sustainability of the agri-fishery business concepts of the young farmer-aspirants, which can either be operated by an individual youth or as a joint venture between two or more individuals.

The panel of evaluators is composed of the Department of Trade and Industry Supervising Development Specialist Lorraine C. Brillantes, Highly Urbanized City Agricultural and Fishery Council chairperson Roger E. Butlig, DA-10 Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Division chief Lorena V. Duna, High Value Crops Development Program focal person Kersten S. Pagalan, and Livestock focal person Jamaica L. Docdoc.

Presenters who will be hailed as provincial winners will receive a grant worth P80K in support of the implementation of their proposed micro- and small-scale agri-fishery enterprises.

Furthermore, they will continue to vie for the seven spots as regional awardees, with categories ranging from production, processing, and digital agriculture, and at stake is P150K financial grant per awardee, while P300K awaits once declared as one of the national level winners.#