Date Posted: 11/20/2012 1:26:23 AM
Posted By: Moff j Membership Level: Silver Total Points: 485
The unemployment rate in the country is very high. On top of this young people are graduating every year with qualifications in different fields, all of them with the hope of securing a job. Very few get absorbed into the job market because of the depressed opportunities. Therefore those who do not get absorbed into the white collar job market have to get a means for survival because life has to go with or without a job. One of the survival techniques that the graduating intellects should use is to engage in agricultural activities. Agriculture is for sure the backbone of our economy and it provides employment to more than 70% of the working population. However, due to urban rural migration, this source of employment is being ignored by many young people especially those who have garnered some kind of training. They might probably be viewing it as a "dirty job" or job for the rural people. This has seen agriculture being left to old people and retirees in the rural areas. However, one thing that the learned friends fail to understand is that this is a booming business and those who have persevered are surely enjoying the rewards. The simple reason for this is that people will never stop eating. To make the matter juicier statistics have shown that the Kenyan population is still growing at a high rate. This hence implies that the market for agricultural produce is only going to get bigger.You may argue that farming is directly correlated with weather conditions, which makes it very risky. Well, you are right! However, there are ways that you can hedge this risk by being creative. One of the ways that you can do this is through irrigation. Proximity to a water source such as a river or a borehole should make your work much easier and adopting agriculture will with no doubt improve your living conditions.Then there is also the green house technology. This may require substantial initial investment but the future benefits are also worth the outlay. When you start doing agricultural you need also to diversify your products. This means that you can do crop farming, livestock (such as rabbit, cattle, goat, poultry, etc) rearing, fish production, among others. The bottomline here is the simple rule of thumb that you do not put all your eggs in one basket.Whether you will be doing it for your own consumption, as a hobby, or for commercial purposes (commonly referred to as agribusiness), the objective of improving your welfare and living standards will be accomplished. Therefore, the youth should open their eyes and see this great opportunity in agriculture instead of crying day in day out that there are no jobs, or engaging in criminal activities.
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