Young graduates in agriculture who will this year go to Israel to undergo a professional internship in modern farming have been urged to take advantage of this opportunity to acquire new skills and experience that will enable them to become modern farmers back home in the near future.
The call was made on August 30, 2019 by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Jean Claude Musabyimana, and Israel Ambassador to Rwandan, H.E Ron Adam. Both officials were meeting and interacting with 170 young Rwandans, who will go for this internship starting next month, at the closing ceremony of their 3-day induction training in Kigali before their departure.
Permanent Secretary Musabyimana reminded them that they are among few lucky Rwandans who got such an opportunity that offers an international exposure. And he advised them to not misuse the opportunity they have got; noting that 11-month internship is enough to gain practical experience.
The internship focuses on smart farming, vegetable farming, fruit tree farming, plant protection, soil conservation, water management & irrigation techniques, advanced agriculture under international standards, computer economics, project planning, post-harvest, and livestock-related courses among others.
“We are excited to share our experience with future generation of modern farmers of Rwanda,” Ambassador Adam told the young graduates who are ready to go to Israel. “President Paul Kagame often tells people to ‘think big’. So, you should also think big and follow your president.”
Currently, 150 young Rwandans are completing the same internship program in Israel. This year, the number was increased to 170 while it is expected to be increased to 200 next year, the ambassador revealed.
In total, 765 young Rwandans have completed such a professional internship programme in modern farming in Israel since the first cohort went there in 2012.
Some of them such as Horticulture in Reality Cooperative (HoReCo) are contributing to the modernization of Rwandan agriculture sector mainly in horticulture.