Trending
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and Green Economy and the Dominica Bureau of Gender Affairs, convened an engagement with the National Association of Youth in Agriculture (NAYA) mid last month to introduce the Gender-Responsive Climate-Smart Agriculture and Food Systems (GCAF) Project and discuss opportunities for strengthening youth participation in climate-smart agriculture.
GCAF is a multi-country project, which is funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by FAO. In Dominica, the project is supporting farmers and producer organizations, especially youth across Dominica, to improve productivity, strengthen market access, and build resilience to climate change.
The session, held at the Fisheries Division Conference Room in Roseau and facilitated by Mrs. Shan Oliver-Julien, FAO National Project Coordinator, provided an overview of the GCAF Project and its relevance to youth-led agricultural development. The engagement created an important platform for dialogue, allowing NAYA members to share their ongoing work, highlight key successes, outline operational challenges, and identify priority areas where technical and institutional support could further strengthen the organization.
The National Association of Youth in Agriculture (NAYA Inc.) is a youth-led organization dedicated to increasing youth participation in agriculture and advancing sustainable agricultural development in Dominica. Established in 2003, NAYA serves as the national voice for young farmers and agripreneurs, advocating for innovation, climate resilience, and inclusive growth within the sector. Through leadership development, capacity building, and strategic partnerships, NAYA empowers young people to view agriculture as a viable, modern, and profitable enterprise while contributing meaningfully to Dominica’s socio-economic development.
While 13 members attended the meeting, it is anticipated that 22 members in total will directly benefit from the GCAP project. Participants engaged in activities across all four GCAF-supported value chains: vegetables, apiculture, dasheen, and freshwater prawns. Among those present were Mr. Earl White, President of NAYA, and Mr. Neon Charles, Vice President, whose leadership continues to guide youth engagement and innovation in agriculture.
According to Earl K. White Jr., President, National Association of Youth in Agriculture (NAYA Inc.) “Through the GCAF Project, NAYA will gain critical support to empower our members, youth and young women, to adopt climate smart practices, and strengthen market access. This initiative will enable us to lead efforts in building resilient, inclusive, and sustainable agriculture, while ensuring young people actively shape the future of Dominica’s agricultural sector”.
Technical support was also provided by Mr. Brent Symes, FAO Crop Production Specialist; Mr. Steven Reid of the Dominica Bureau of Gender Affairs; and Mrs. Amonia Paul-Rolle, GCAF Project Gender and Social Inclusion Specialist.
As part of the engagement, Mr. Keian Stephenson, Acting Director of Agriculture, introduced the Farmer Field Schools (FFS) approach, highlighting its participatory and practical methodology for strengthening farmers’ technical competencies, improving production management, and enhancing climate resilience. He noted that more detailed assessments will be conducted with NAYA members in the coming months to inform the design of a tailored training programme aligned with their specific needs and operational realities.
The NAYA group represents a strategic partner under the GCAF Project, given its strong youth membership, active involvement across multiple priority value chains, and its role in advancing innovation and entrepreneurship within the agricultural sector. Strengthening the capacity of NAYA is therefore important to achieving the project’s objectives of promoting gender-responsive, climate-smart agriculture while supporting youth empowerment, sustainable livelihoods, and national food security.
FAO and its partners look forward to continued collaboration with NAYA and to supporting the successful development of youth-driven, climate-smart agriculture in Dominica.
END –
Front row (Left to Right): Earl K. White, President of NAYA; Shan Oliver-Julien, FAO National Project Coordinator; and Keian Stephenson, MOA Director of Agriculture and FAO National Correspondent.
Shan Oliver-Julien, FAO National Project Cooridnator presentation on the GCAF Project and NAYA Engagements.
Engagement with the NAYA group by Keian Stephenson, MOA Director of Agriculture and FAO National
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and Green Economy and the Dominica Bureau of Gender Affairs, convened an engagement with the National Association of Youth in Agriculture (NAYA) mid last month to introduce the Gender-Responsive Climate-Smart Agriculture and Food Systems (GCAF) Project and discuss opportunities for strengthening youth participation in climate-smart agriculture.
GCAF is a multi-country project, which is funded by Global Affairs Canada and implemented by FAO. In Dominica, the project is supporting farmers and producer organizations, especially youth across Dominica, to improve productivity, strengthen market access, and build resilience to climate change.
The session, held at the Fisheries Division Conference Room in Roseau and facilitated by Mrs. Shan Oliver-Julien, FAO National Project Coordinator, provided an overview of the GCAF Project and its relevance to youth-led agricultural development. The engagement created an important platform for dialogue, allowing NAYA members to share their ongoing work, highlight key successes, outline operational challenges, and identify priority areas where technical and institutional support could further strengthen the organization.
The National Association of Youth in Agriculture (NAYA Inc.) is a youth-led organization dedicated to increasing youth participation in agriculture and advancing sustainable agricultural development in Dominica. Established in 2003, NAYA serves as the national voice for young farmers and agripreneurs, advocating for innovation, climate resilience, and inclusive growth within the sector. Through leadership development, capacity building, and strategic partnerships, NAYA empowers young people to view agriculture as a viable, modern, and profitable enterprise while contributing meaningfully to Dominica’s socio-economic development.
While 13 members attended the meeting, it is anticipated that 22 members in total will directly benefit from the GCAP project. Participants engaged in activities across all four GCAF-supported value chains: vegetables, apiculture, dasheen, and freshwater prawns. Among those present were Mr. Earl White, President of NAYA, and Mr. Neon Charles, Vice President, whose leadership continues to guide youth engagement and innovation in agriculture.
According to Earl K. White Jr., President, National Association of Youth in Agriculture (NAYA Inc.) “Through the GCAF Project, NAYA will gain critical support to empower our members, youth and young women, to adopt climate smart practices, and strengthen market access. This initiative will enable us to lead efforts in building resilient, inclusive, and sustainable agriculture, while ensuring young people actively shape the future of Dominica’s agricultural sector”.
Technical support was also provided by Mr. Brent Symes, FAO Crop Production Specialist; Mr. Steven Reid of the Dominica Bureau of Gender Affairs; and Mrs. Amonia Paul-Rolle, GCAF Project Gender and Social Inclusion Specialist.
As part of the engagement, Mr. Keian Stephenson, Acting Director of Agriculture, introduced the Farmer Field Schools (FFS) approach, highlighting its participatory and practical methodology for strengthening farmers’ technical competencies, improving production management, and enhancing climate resilience. He noted that more detailed assessments will be conducted with NAYA members in the coming months to inform the design of a tailored training programme aligned with their specific needs and operational realities.
The NAYA group represents a strategic partner under the GCAF Project, given its strong youth membership, active involvement across multiple priority value chains, and its role in advancing innovation and entrepreneurship within the agricultural sector. Strengthening the capacity of NAYA is therefore important to achieving the project’s objectives of promoting gender-responsive, climate-smart agriculture while supporting youth empowerment, sustainable livelihoods, and national food security.
FAO and its partners look forward to continued collaboration with NAYA and to supporting the successful development of youth-driven, climate-smart agriculture in Dominica.
END –
Front row (Left to Right): Earl K. White, President of NAYA; Shan Oliver-Julien, FAO National Project Coordinator; and Keian Stephenson, MOA Director of Agriculture and FAO National Correspondent.
Shan Oliver-Julien, FAO National Project Cooridnator presentation on the GCAF Project and NAYA Engagements.
Engagement with the NAYA group by Keian Stephenson, MOA Director of Agriculture and FAO National
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
We’re excited to introduce Emonew, Dominica’s fresh new source for general country news. From community updates to national stories, we’re here to keep you informed, connected, and up to date.
Copyright Emonews 2025
