KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaica 4-H Clubs will showcase the successes of youth involvement in agriculture when the gates of the Youth in Agriculture Village open this Saturday at the Denbigh Agricultural & Industrial Show.

Executive Director of the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, Dr Ronald Blake, said the Jamaica 4-H Clubs along with partners, namely College of Agricultural Science & Education (CASE) and Ebony Park HEART Academy, will showcase the newest technologies and opportunities in “agri-preneurship”.

He added that the village will also be the venue for students who are currently engaged in the study of agriculture, hailing from the parishes of Manchester, St Ann and St Catherine to apply for the Rio Tinto Alcan Scholarship fund, whose funds are managed by the Development Bank of Jamaica and the programme executed by the Jamaica 4-H Clubs.

Youth in Agriculture Day, which is being observed on Saturday, will see close to 200 youth between the ages of 18 and 35 years compete in events including Agricultural Jingle, Business Model/Plan, Agri-Animation, Agro-Processing and the Agri-Quiz Competitions.

Held under the theme, “Youth Farmers: Budding Nation Builders,” the village will open daily at 9:00 am and close at 6:00 pm.

This is one of the main deliverables of the National Youth in Agriculture Programme spearheaded by the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, the youth training arm of the Ministry of Industry, Agriculture and Fisheries (MICAF).

It has been doing so since 2008, when it was given the mandate by the Government to lead the multi-agency planning committee. The committee aims to, among other things, stimulate youth involvement in agriculture, as well as to preserve food security.