• Today: October 7, 2026

Youth gain hands-on experience in rice farming

Local youth on Tuesday participated in the second cropping season of the Centre for Strategic and Policy Studies (CSPS) of Youth Training Programme under the Global Green Growth Institute and BIMP-EAGA-Republic of Korea Cooperation Fund project ‘Promoting Youth Engagement and Employment in Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Agriculture and Food Systems for Food Security: An Action Research on the Rice Value Chain in Brunei Darussalam’.

The second-season harvest marks the completion of two cropping seasons of practical, field-based training at the MPK Junjongan paddy site. The programme was designed to give youth hands-on experience in rice cultivation while strengthening their understanding of opportunities across Brunei Darussalam’s rice value chain.

The programme began with classroom-based training in August 2025, followed by field training from November 2025. Over the two cropping seasons, 50 Bruneian youth gained practical experience in land preparation, planting, crop maintenance, nutrient and water management, weed control, crop monitoring and harvesting. The second season gave participants the opportunity to further apply and strengthen the knowledge and skills gained during the first.

Participants expressed their appreciation for the programme, describing it as a valuable opportunity to experience farming first-hand and “to better understand the work that farmers in Brunei do.” They noted that the programme has been helpful in encouraging young people to remain involved in agriculture, particularly the rice industry. Participants also valued the chance to learn new things and make new friends, and hoped that more young people would join the initiative.

Photos show the participants during the programme. PHOTOS: SIM YH

The experiences and findings from both cropping seasons will contribute to the project’s assessment of approaches to strengthening youth participation and employment in Brunei Darussalam’s rice sector. The knowledge, practical skills and networks gained through the programme are intended to provide participants with a stronger foundation to explore future opportunities in farming, agribusiness and other activities across the rice value chain.

The project is led by CSPS Executive Director Dr Diana Cheong as Project Leader, supported by Deputy Project Leader Dr Kartini Rahman and Project Coordinators Dr Sufrizul Husseini and Anwar Hashim. The training was conducted under the guidance of Rice Technical Expert Efren S Madayag, together with participating farmers and project partners.

 

SOURCE/AUTHOR : BORNEO BULLETIN

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