Gayaza High School farm camp draws hundreds of students

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A total of 600 students from 80 schools across the country have gathered at Gayaza High School in Wakiso district to learn about best farming practices.

Adding value to different agricultural products is also part of this school farm camp.

On the second day of the camp (Saturday), the students were taken through different farming practices, including dairy farming, banana farming, poultry and urban farming.

Students from 80 schools across the country have gathered at Gayaza High School in Wakiso district to learn about best farming practices. (Photo by Herbert Musoke)

Under dairy, they got to know the process of disease identification, artificial insemination and milking of cows.

Officials from the National Animal Genetics Resources Centre and Data Bank were the trainers.

Robin Kizito Katongole, the headteacher of Gayaza High School, said that this year, the farm camp is looking to promote the integration of agribusiness activities within the formal secondary school curriculum as a holistic approach towards entrepreneurship.

“We believe that to accelerate development in Uganda, schools should reorient their activities towards equipping the youth with agribusiness skills through their day-to day-classroom engagements and that is what this farm camp wants to achieve,” she said.

Patrick Muyinda, the school farm camp coordinator and farm manager, said the exposure of the students to the different activities in the dairy unit would be accompanied by leadership and professional development workshops, among other activities.

On the second day of the camp (Saturday), the students were taken through different farming practices, including dairy farming, banana farming, poultry and urban farming. (Photo by Herbert Musoke)

This three-day farm camp was started by Gayaza High School in 2014.

Initially hosting fewer than 100 students, it has since grown to hosting more students thanks to sponsors including Engineering Solutions (Engsol), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the agriculture ministry through the National Animal Genetic Resources Center and Data Bank (NAGRC&DB).

Other sponsors include Sumz Food Processors, Movit Products, Stanbic Bank, BRAC Seed and Agro Enterprise and NUCAFE.