Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Selects 208 Trainees for Smart Farm Youth Startup Incubation Center

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Kim Hyewon] The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on the 29th that it has finalized the selection of 208 new trainees for this year at the 'Intelligent Farm (Smart Farm) Youth Startup Incubation Center.'

The Smart Farm Youth Startup Incubation Center provides practical, hands-on education to young people interested in agriculture, enabling them to start businesses or find employment using smart farm technologies.

This year, a total of 567 applicants applied, resulting in a competition ratio of 2.7 to 1. The average age of the final selectees is 31.2 years, and female trainees account for 25% (52 individuals).

Among the trainees, many are ICT professionals, including a researcher who worked for 13 years at a major IT company. Approximately 74% of the total are non-agriculture majors.

They will receive training for 20 months starting from the end of next month at four incubation centers. The curriculum consists of introductory education focused on basic theory, educational practice, and management practice.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs plans to fully cover the tuition fees and provide a monthly practice allowance of up to 700,000 KRW during the training period. Upon completion, trainees will be eligible to apply for comprehensive smart farm funding and receive preferential guarantees from the Agricultural, Forestry and Fisheries Credit Guarantee Fund.

Kim Won-il, Director of Agricultural Life Policy at the Ministry, stated, "Through this long-term smart farm education program, we will cultivate experts who will lead the convergence of agriculture and information and communication technology," adding, "We also expect this program to increase the influx of youth into rural areas."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.