Batangtoru, 26 September 2023 – PT Agincourt Resources (PTAR) handed over a total prize of IDR 100 million in the form of agricultural business development to 15 Millennial Actor Farmers of South Tapanuli Regency at the 2023 Gelar Karya Tani Mandiri(Independent Farmers Work Exhibition) at Sopo Daganak, Batangtoru, South Tapanuli, Monday (25/09). The event was attended by 400 invitees including the Regent and Forkopimda (Regional Leadership Communication Forum) of South Tapanuli, representatives of Batangtoru and Muara Batangtoru District farmer groups, South Tapanuli Regency BPP (Agriculture Extension Center) Officers, academicians, and local community.
“We carry out this Millennial Actor Farmer Program to help the government regenerate farmers, especially in South Tapanuli, because according to the Central Statistics Agency, farmers in Indonesia are still dominated by generation X, namely those aged 41-56 years. Apart from that, we also want to encourage the creation of new and innovative business models in the agribusiness sector to promote increased productivity and income of farmers,” said Rahmat Lubis, General Manager Operations PTAR.
Rahmat said that this program is carried out in several stages, starting from launching the program and registering participants in June, continuing with registration from June to July, which was attended by 63 participants, as well as the audition and selection stages which were carried out in August and September.In the selection stage, the assessment consisted of several indicators, ranging from technical factors, innovation, institutions, to the role of farmer actors in community empowerment. In the implementation, PTAR collaborated with South Tapanuli Agriculture Office and Jambi Agricultural Training Center as the experts.
“Apart from supporting thegovernment programs in the field of food security, we also hope that we can change young people’s paradigm about the world of agriculture to be more positive,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Regent of South Tapanuli, Dolly Pasaribu, appreciated PTAR for organizing this event. He said that agriculture is one of the most important sectors in South Tapanuli.
“We have very high potential to develop agriculture. Hopefully, these Millennial Actor Farmers can sharetheir knowledge with wider community, thereby encouraging aspects of agriculture in our area to become more advanced,” said Dolly.
The 15 winners are Herman Hatimbulan, Amar Husin Sitompul, Saddam Husein Rambe, Muhya Wahyu Rambe, Mhd. Azis Hutasuhut, Parlaungan Simanjuntak, Damu Roy Sahnan Nasution, Rahmad Soehedi Simatupang, Riskon Mulyadi, A. Fauzi Batubara, Andre Ilham, Pandapotan Saputra, Arif Sopiandi Hasibuan, Wardah, and David Fernando.
Andre Ilham, one of the winners from Batangtoru District, thanked and expressed his appreciation to PTAR for holding this event. This man, who has a business unit named Sahabat Tani, focuses on horticultural plantsnursery business such as durian, mango, petai (stink beans) and jengkol (dog fruit).
“This is a good program to improve farmers’ welfare. Hopefully this winnertitle can make my business developfurther and able to create jobopportunities for the local community,” he said.
In this event, apart from announcing the winners, an exhibition of agricultural products from 15 South Tapanuli District Agricultural Extension Centers was also held, as well as seminars and talk shows on agricultural and agribusiness development policies and strategies with resource persons and experts.
