Agricultural Colleges urged to introduce entrepreneurship

Nii Amasah Namoale, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, has charged agricultural institutions in the country to introduce entrepreneurship in their curriculum.

This he said would help inculcate entrepreneurial skills that will encourage their graduates to set up their own commercial farms.

Nii Amasah Namoale said as frontline staff, graduates from agricultural colleges have huge responsibility in transforming the sector to make it more attractive to the youth, to enable the government to achieve the goals of the agricultural sector.

The Deputy Minister said government is providing a conducive environment for agricultural modernization and that “it is important for the graduates from the colleges to enter into farming along side their normal work to serve as role models to the youth”.

Nii Amasah Namorle made the call at a joint graduation ceremony of the first batch of diploma graduates in general agriculture from the Kwadaso and Ohawu agricultural colleges, in Kumasi, on Saturday.

One Hundred and three (103) graduates, comprising 55 from Kwadaso and 48 from Ohawu received certificates in general agriculture.

The Minister said there are a lot of opportunities in the food chain and agribusiness sector and there was the need for them to use the knowledge and skills acquired to create jobs for themselves instead of waiting to be employed by the government.

He advised the Colleges to undertake self-help initiatives and embark on projects and activities that would generate incomes to augment government resources provided to them.

Dr Ernest Okorley, who represented the Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, advised the graduates to endeavour to make positive contributions to society.

The Principal of the Kwadaso Agricultural College Mr Kwabena Fosu Kontor said the students have been given the needed knowledge and skills to address some of the emerging challenges in modern agriculture and hope they would live up to expectation.

Source: GNA