Agustinus is a young farmer from the Romuni farmer group in Biak Numfor, Papua. Born into a farming family, Agus continued his parents’ work. “Born and grew up in a place with land, I choose farming as a source of livelihood,” he said. Previously, Agus had experience growing vegetables, but he felt that the results were not optimal. Until finally in 2018, he met one of Yayasan Bina Tani Sejahtera’s Technical Field Officers, Ganang Prakoso. Since then, he received training related to good agricultural practices and started to plant chilies and shallots.
After receiving training, Agus felt that his crops were getting better. He also got a very satisfying harvest. “Before the assistance, I never knew how to take care of and fertilize my plants properly. But now, I can tell the difference between pests and diseases, I can also apply fertilizers until my crop yields are good,” he continued.
Currently, Agus is growing chilies, eggplants, and beans. He also said that the harvest from his land was used to meet the family’s daily vegetable needs. “Because we live in a village, the most important thing is the family’s vegetable needs. If there are leftovers, we will sell them,” he explained. Agus hopes that in the future there will be many young people who decide to become farmers to meet the needs of local vegetable supplies.
