Staff Reporter
WINDHOEK – Dassies training has invited farmers to enroll their farmworkers for the first farmworker training camp which will be held at Farm Dassiesfontein, some 30 kilometers from Mariental on the road to Maltahöhe in the Hardap region.
The course is scheduled for 2 April to 5 June this year. Course director, Cyntia Biwa told New Era last week that no school qualifications will be needed to enroll in the course and for “early bird” tariff is N$1 500 per participant if payable before this week Friday.
“The standard fee is N$2 500 and registration closes on 28 February 2020. Included in the registration fee is accommodation, meals and training materials,” she said.
She said the training will be theoretical lessons and practical application and includes the importance of a farmworker, communication, health and safety, hygiene, count of animals, livestock vaccination, alcohol and drug abuse, gender violence, gardening, fencing and more.
Biwa said Dassies Farm Workers Training Camp is established with the aim of providing training for farmworkers on various aspects of farming.
She said the Training Camp marks the birth of an entity geared towards the training and advancement of farmworkers.
“As a training camp passionate about grooming skilled and competent farm workers, Dassies Farm Workers Training Camp offers an opportunity for farmworkers to break generational chains of poverty, deprivation, and deficiency and move toward prosperity, abundance, and sufficiency,” she stressed.
She said to facilitate the aforementioned change, the training camp will provide theoretical and practical training to farmworkers to help them execute their responsibilities effectively and efficiently.
For years and across generations, she said farmworkers have been trapped under a cycle of poverty, which forced them to take up farming jobs for which they lacked the necessary knowledge and skills.
According to her, in these jobs farmworkers rarely receive basics on-the-job training, yet, with little remuneration, were expected to deliver proficient work. Dassies Farm Workers Training Camp aims to bridge the gap between farm workers and the lack of knowledge and skills required for farm work. She said Dassies Farm Workers Training Camp understands that everyday farming operations are rife with challenges and hardships, and that industry knowledge of farm work is crucial to successful farming.
Thus, she said the training will equip farmworkers with the necessary technical and theoretical knowledge and skill required for their job as well as teach farmworkers to take ownership, responsibility and accountability for their work.
She said during this training they will also be reminded about the importance of their role as a farmworkers to the farming operation.
“Investing in a farmworkers’ education and skills development will generate feelings of value and appreciation in farmworkers, which will boost their self-esteem, self-image, and self-efficacy and thus benefit the farming operation and industry,” said Biwa.
She said the training camp is an invaluable resource for farmers to ensure that their farmworkers are trained, assessed, and certified to confidently enact the roles they are entrusted with.
And, as a result of this training, she said the status of the agricultural sector will be elevated. Such aggrandizement will be evident in the quality of work delivered by the farmworkers, the profit gained from efficient work, and the expansion of farms across the region.
“The success of this project is paramount, thus Dassies Farm Workers Training Camp is committed and dedicated to the training of farmworkers.”
“We acknowledge that people are an important resource of a business and therefore we are proponents of investing in people’s development because developing people provides a path toward stability, prosperity, and profitability of industry,” she added.