The Department of Agriculture (DA) is looking for 900 fresh graduates to attend agricultural programs amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis.
Under the Mentoring and Attracting Youth in Agriculture (MAYA) program, fresh graduates will be given an opportunity to serve as a frontliner in helping with the department’s projects in every district of the Philippines.
According to DA Secretary William Dar, the youth will have a huge contribution in advancing the farming and fishing sectors since they are great with technology.
The DA will allot a PhP 100 million budget to entice the youth. The program will serve as On-the-Job Training (OJT) with competitive allowance that will last for 6 months. After the MAYA program, the DA-Agricultural Program Coordinating Offices will give them an opportunity to start their own Agri-fishery business plan in their own localities. The department will provide a financial loan up to PhP 500, 000 to fund their project with no interest and payable in a span of 5 years. The MAYA program accepts degree holders from ages 18-30.
Report from Cleizl Pardilla
