The Making of an Agricultural Graduate

Peter Navus,

Senior Lecturer in Agricultural Management,

Department of Agriculture,

School of Natural Resources,

PNG University of Natural Resources & Environment,

Papua New Guinea

Outline of this paper(the finishing touches)

1. Introduction2. Objectives (purpose, aims)3. The method (processes/activities)4. Mentors 5. The resources needed6. SWOT (samples of learning outcomes)7. Destinations 8. Concluding remarks9. The graduate10. The graduate at work11. The Question

Introduction

• The building block process (Willie Maso) continues. The four semesters that the 1st speaker covered are the building blocks for this diploma course.

• Finishing touches. • Entry requirements - at least two of the science subjects

at Secondary schools. • Physics, chemistry and biology. • Four semesters a student is either streamed into a

bachelor or a diploma programme. • The diploma pathway.

Introduction

• Suit of subjects leading to Diploma in Tropical Agriculture of the University of Natural Resources (formally Vudal) for at least 20 years now.

Introduction

• The suit of subjects covers the following components; natural resources studies (agriculture & livestock), basic science, rural engineering, information management as well as agricultural management.

• Agricultural management encompasses all of the components.

Objectives

– Prepares the student for the real life following graduation targeting two areas.

– To secure life security (source of livelihood - employment) with formal, informal, or self employment.

Purpose

– To ensure that the following skills are acquired; • communication and interpersonal skills,

• problem solving skills,

• sound knowledge of agriculture science in crops, agriculture (and marine).

Aims

– To acquire the skills of managing their resources made available.

– To establish, manage and evaluate or produce a report of a small farm business by the end of the academic year

Methods

• The process of acquiring the skill by the shareholders

• This subject involves practical experience involving groups that consist of between six to twelve students depending on the available resources including land (Figure: 1).

• It is important to note the relative walking distance between the classrooms and the farm plots used by the students.

Figure 1: PNGUNRE’s Vudal campus (1998) where the

farm is located

You are here!

The process of acquiring the skill by the shareholders

• The group members are the shareholders. • Responsibility of each shareholder

– to plan, organize, leading and coordinating all the necessary activities

– to meet the aims of the course. – The aims of the course are also the aims of the business

groups. – The activities; record keeping, simple accounting,

labour management, project planning and reporting in a real farming situation on an area of land allocated to the group within the University campus.

Mentors

• These are different lecturing staff members that are available to assist the students in addition to the subject coordinator.

The resources

• Classified into two areas. – The physical resources include, land labour,

capital (buildings) management skills and information.

– The other is capital (cash). – Business Plan.

The resources

• Land (capital). – Approximately 6,000 square meters of the

University Farm land is allocated annually free of charge.

– Each of the five groups is allocated 1200 square meters each.

– Depending on the number of students per group each individual student then is allocated his/her portion from the group to use.

The resources

• Labour (2nd year students, et. al.). Three sources of manpower that the students may

access. – The students themselves, – Year 2 students providing this service through

another subject called On-Farm practice. – Peers and friends who may be any one.

The resources

• Capital (buildings).

• Accessible at the University farm are seeds, seedlings and soil sterilization facilities

• Available at minimal costs to the students.

The resources

• Management skills (3rd year students). – The required management skills is provided by

the students (3rd Years) themselves as owners/managers.

– Mentors are allocated so that they may assist them at anytime for advice and guidance.

The resources

• Information (relevant). • In this age of information it is critical that students

know which relevant and therefore useful information is.

• Students are encouraged to show the ability to use appropriate information by the way they produce their reports and demonstrate the understanding by

• the way they argue and present their points in the seminars and assignments.

The resources

• Capital – cash management.

• This is a critical element of any business foundation.

• Each year students obtain a loan of USD140.00 (K400.00) per farm business group repayable in eight months at a flat rate of 15%.

The resources

• Management (responsibilities & functions). • Election

– of a project manager, – a secretary and a treasurer, – The non-executive members themselves are managers of the

choice of an enterprise.• Enterprise can be crops or livestock based. • Mandatory to contribute to the revenue generation of the business.• The shareholders during each month produce a progress report from

which the progress is monitored. • Group and individual assessments. • It is from these activities that the final report (show a sample) is

produced at the end of October. • The final report serves the purpose of highlighting strengths, the

weakness from which improvements can be made to the plan of the farm to improve production and economic returns.

The resources

Time. • This is a commodity most students do not really take

seriously even when they are nearing the end of their studies or training.

• Formal time requirement for the course is 52 hours. However students spend on an average of 2 hours or more weekly while they are not engage in other activities.

• The course is focused on and penalize heavily through the deduction of marks and meeting deadlines of assignments.

Assessments

• This is a non-examinable subject because it is skilled based.

• assessments include monthly progress reports, principal and interest of loan repayments, farm resource audit, financial and labour management.

• Formal classroom sessions are conducted as part of a monitoring and control mechanism. This is done by having lectures and tutorial (class) attendance is one of the assessment activities.

The SWOT analysisThe strengths. • Application of concepts that a student acquired over a period from

childhood to tertiary level learning. • 90 % of the inputs activity is to do with the physical manipulation of

resources . • A high level of ownership status associated with the activities from

inputs to outputs. • Systematic sequence of events that includes the student. • The student becomes accountable for the outcomes that are set.• High level of benefits in terms of sharing the profits (Table 1). • Bonus because declaring a profit indicates that the student has

acquired the skills needed to manage the resources efficiently. • interact with each other based on the results of their work (input) on

site on a daily basis. In the process each one takes pride in the volume and especially the quality (outcome) of the produce.

The SWOT analysis

Evidence of learning – examples in 2009.

• The financial performance of the five different groups (FBG) varies a lot.

• FBG No.1 (Table 1) is USD115 (K383.67)

• The highest performance is FBG No. 2 USD630 (K1800).

Table 1: showing Farm Business Group No 1’s Profit and

Loss Statement in 2009 as an example.

• OPERATING INCOME• Crops• Corn K159.50• E/cabbage K208.00• Bean K22.00• Pakchoi K56.00• Capsicum K16.30• Tomato K30.00• Saladeer K77.50• GROSS SALES: K569.30

(Cont. )Table 1: showing Farm Business Group No 1’s

Profit and Loss Statement in 2009 as an example.

• VARIABLE COSTS• Seedlings

– Corn K10.00– Bean K7.00– Pakchoi K12.00– Tomato K18.00– Saladeer K24.00– E/cabbage K27.00

• Total Variable Cost:K98.00

(Cont. )Table 1: showing Farm Business Group No 1’s

Profit and Loss Statement in 2009 as an example.

• GROSS MARGIN: K471.30• OVERHEAD EXPENSES

K0.00• OPERATING PROFIT• Add non-operating income – Nil K471.30• Less non-operating expense – K45.00 K426.30 • NET PROFIT before tax K426.30• GST (10%) K42.63• NET PROFIT after tax K383.67

Learning outcomes(continue)

Pest and Diseases . Figure 2: Pakchoi affected by cluster caterpillars

(Crocidolomia binotalis)from FBG No. 3. 2005

The SWOT analysis

• The weaknesses. – There is no examination as part of the

assessment activities. – Students become complacent by deciding not to

show up for lectures and tutorials that are meant to complement learning activities on the farm plots.

The SWOT analysis

The opportunities. • To be able to prove that they can contribute constructively

to a system. • In this case the course more or less compel each person to

show that they are capable of meeting the requirement of the course by being able to declare a profit as a proof.

• They are able to make money that they will use as additional stipend instead of relying on their parents and sponsors for financial support.

• It enables each person as well as a group to compare notes based on the performance and final results at the end of the academic year.

The SWOT analysis

• The threats. • The sources are based on social factors.

– Factors include, stealing by fellow students and others. Damage to garden plots by free ranged chickens (& goats) from the neighbouring settlement population scratching around for food in the plots.

– Damage caused by livestock from the University from treading over seedlings as well as eating immature young leaves.

– Laziness and lack of communication among students also contributed to poor performance and will discourage others in the group.

– University may decide not to provide funds in the future.

Destinations for formal employment

Graduates find employments with the private sector that include non-state actors (NSA), private sector (as plantation managers, export marketing divisions), banks, teaching in provincial and secondary schools, salespersons, government and importantly self employed.

Concluding remarks

• That together with the relevant information and knowledge acquired after the eight months (February to October)

• with embedded personal interest and ambition in a wide range of topics in an industry driven resource development

• he or she would be reasonably confident in a future environment of work, study or training.

• I believe by then the student possess the basic ingredients of an agricultural graduate in tropical agriculture;

• acquired the generic attributes (communication and interpersonal skills); problem solving skills; sound knowledge of basic and agricultural sciences plus in-depth studies in crops and livestock in PNG

• or anywhere the graduate wishes to pursue his or her profession.

The graduate

Figure 3: Typical Award Ceremony including Diploma in green colored gowns.

The Graduate at the workplaceformal employment

“I believe that the main strength of the Vudal’s Diploma program is based on practical fieldwork. In large scale industries like oil palm where I am working both past and present graduates are confident in what they are doing and they know their job just like the back of their hands. ”

– Wilfred Tangole, (1996) Manager New Britain Palm Oil Ltd ( now in Solomon Islands)

The Graduate at the workplaceself-employed (p25)

• Owner of 100ha of land with 46ha of cocoa trees processing plant. He employed 25 labourers in the cocoa plantation.

• He operated a cocoa buying agency for Agmark Pacific. He was buying cocoa and transported them to AgMark Pacific Rabaul, ENB in his own truck.

• His agribusiness include a balsa production, and operated a Lucas Mill

• Late Emmanuel Tindiri (1975) Self Employed from manus Island but settler in ENBP in the Inland Baining Local Level Government after formal employment with the ENB Department of Primary Industry in 1982.

Where is that golden solution?

• May be we should consider looking into genetic engineering more seriously???…..

• To multiply the number of the Wildfreds and the Emanuelses????

• In order to make an impact????

Thank you – Ladies & Gentlemen