The Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) welcomed the new batch of trainees as this year’s Pre-Departure Orientation Course (PDOC) kicked off. For 2018, twenty-three (23) young farmers from all over the country will be preparing prior to their 11-month intensive on-farm training in Japan as part of the Young Filipino Farmers’ Training Program in Japan (YFFTPJ). The YFFTPJ will give these trainees the opportunity to learn Japan’s agri-technologies and further enhance their farming skills.
The PDOC is a 75-day preparatory training given to trainees in the areas of values formation, computer literacy, Nihonggo language, Japanese culture, and technical aspects in the production of various agricultural commodities. Before this, the trainees participated in the 40-day Home –Stay Module with YFFTPJ alumni members and farmer-mentors in different parts of the country to expose them to different farm activities.
Upon return of the trainees, they are expected to apply their newly-acquired learnings and skills through their chosen agricultural ventures and each will be provided with a P 50,000 capital as part of the program. The YFFTPJ, as spearheaded by the Agricultural Training Institute, is the Philippine’s counterpart for the ASEAN Young Farmer Leaders Training Program in Japan.