Gayaza students trained in modern farming methods

By Donald Kiirya,        

The National Animal Genetic Resource Centre and Data Bank (NAGRIC&DB) has trained students from Gayaza High School in modern farming methods and animal husbandry. 

A total of 50 senior-two students were trained by NAGRIC’s executive director Dr. Daniel Semambo and Abdul-Nashir Galiwango, a Nutritionist at NAGRIC during a field visit last Sunday at Njeru stock farm, a government facility in Buikwe district. 

The students who study Agriculture as a subject at School were being exposed to high-technology farming through field visits to Njeru stock farm. 

They inspected the farm that houses pig sties, goat and cattle pens and later were trained on how to make forage and store it for animals. 

After the tour, Dr. Semambo trained the students in nutrition of animals, disease and pest management, farm mechanisation, organic farming and farm management. 

Semambo provided six acres of land to the school where they planted feeds for animals like Lab lab, Desmodium, maize and elephant grass among others. They will come back and harvest the crops and make feeds for cattle.  

He said the training was also aimed at improving the academic performance of the students while at school and also improve on the milk production of dairy cattle reared at school. 

He said the training will also help the students to introduce these high-tech modern farming methods to their parents in various homes and be able to initiate income generating projects like poultry, piggery, goat herding and cattle grazing, among others. 

Ronald Ddungu, the deputy head teacher in charge of academics said the students also learnt about pasture management and would practice the same at their school farm in a bid to improve feeding of their animals to get better yields of milk.