Students, especially those who wish to venture into the agricultural sector, are currently perfectly poised to lay the foundations to ensure they succeed in that sector.
The best way to see to this is to explore various ecosystems of influential people which ensure they are aptly prepared by the time they graduate, have a job and are ready to begin their agricultural exploits.
These are the sentiments shared by Standard Bank’s Business Banking Manager of Agric Business Central, Piet Bergh, as he addressed a congregation of students, prospective farmers and a few stakeholders in the sector on Thursday, 26 July.
Bergh was speaking at the Youth in Agriculture conference at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST). The conference was held under the theme “Agriculture and the Generation Problem; Rural Youth, Employment and the future of farming”. Various stakeholders, including Presidential Advisor: Youth, Daisry Mathias and the UN Representative on the World Food Program, Bai Mankay Sankoh, to name a few.
The Bank was the main sponsors of the event, which is geared towards supporting and empowering the youth who are the main productive human resource of socio-economic development and can immensely contribute to the agricultural sector.
Standard Bank knows that the importance of the Agriculture sector in addressing food security and supporting the livelihood of the country’s people should not be overlooked as the sector supports above 70% of the Namibian population and employs about a third of the working force.
Bergh explained that most graduates want to venture into agriculture directly after their tertiary studies without a proper portfolio, which is supposed to put them at an advantage of getting the financial assistance they require.
He stressed that one’s personal wealth will determine their ability to sustain their venture and endure in the future. As such, students are in the right position to open their bank account and register their companies while studying because by doing this they are already building their portfolio.
“Students, you need to explore your ecosystem (of influential people) to help you grow your business. Standard Bank provides the right ecosystem for you with its consultants who are willing to guide you and products tailor made for you,” he advised.
Initiatives such as this conference are essential as they aid in activating the youths untapped potentials. This is essential for the Agriculture sector as it has the potential to be the largest employer. As such, Standard Bank has dedicated itself over the years to support the Agriculture sector develop; with the youth being the farmers of tomorrow, it is imperative to draw them into the fold as early as possible.