The initiatives of farmers’ organizations (FOs) in the ASEAN region under the ASEAN Farmers’ Organisation Support Programme (AFOSP) were presented during the First Regional Youth Talk, held on 8 February 2021 via Zoom. AFOSP is co-funded by the European Union (EU) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and is implemented by the consortium Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA) and La Via Campesina (LVC).
In her presentation, AFA Communication and Visibility Officer Irish Dominado highlighted the activities and programs of FOs designed for their youth members. These initiatives include youth leadership training in the Philippines, Myanmar, and Laos, as well as agricultural entrepreneurial training in Indonesia and Myanmar.
In 2017, the ASEAN Foundation, in collaboration with AFA and LVC through AFOSP, conducted the ASEAN-EU Youth Forum for Youth Engagement in Food Production and Value Chains in Jakarta, Indonesia. This event brought together young farmers from various ASEAN and EU countries to share their initiatives and accomplishments, aiming to inspire more young people to engage in agriculture.
In 2020, AFA and LVC, through the AFOSP and Asia Pacific Farmers Program (APFP), organized the Young Farmers Dance Challenge to promote agriculture among youth. Through the APFP, AFA and LVC seeks to engage more young people in agriculture through a variety of interesting and fun activities, both online and face-to-face. APFP is financed by IFAD.
The First Regional Youth Talk featured an “Ask the Ambassador- Youth in the Times of Pandemic” session as its main event, where H.E. Mr. Igor Driesmans, EU Ambassador to ASEAN, shared the significance of this new partnership and discussed what it means to ASEAN youths. Ambassador Driesmans also answered questions from participants during this session which was moderated by Irish Dominado and Mika Tan from the ASEAN Youth Biodiversity Center, both also representing ASEAN’s youth. #
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