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121 Young Timorese Graduate With Agribusiness DegreeUSAID-MAF Program: Molding a New Generation of Agribusiness Entrepreneurs(September 8, 2008)
In a ceremony attended by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF), Mariano Assanami Sabino, and the U.S. Ambassador, Hans G. Klemm, a total of 121 Timorese young Timorese graduated with a post-secondary degree in agribusiness on September 1, 2008. The students comprised the first batch of graduates of the USAID-supported Building Agribusiness Capacity in East Timor (BACET) program now offered in the MAF-administered agricultural high schools in Natarbora-Manatuto, Moleana-Maliana and Fuiloro-Los Palos.
The BACET program, implemented by U.S.-based company Land O’Lakes, is the first agribusiness certificate program of its kind in Timor-Leste, designed to produce young agribusiness entrepreneurs.
In his remarks, the Minister underscored the importance of agriculture in Timor-Leste and the important role that the graduates will play in the nation’s development. “The challenge awaiting all of you is applying your knowledge and skills so that agriculture can contribute to peace. When people are hungry, they will not listen to reason. Agriculture deserves more respect because it can make an important contribution to peace and development,” Minister Sabino told the graduates.
http://timor-leste.usaid.gov/newsroom/newsroom_NR2008-09-08_02.htm
