Eleazar vows more scholarships, education assistance to students taking, interested in agri courses
Retired national police chief and senatorial candidate Gen. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar vowed to provide more scholarships and education assistance to students taking courses related to agriculture and fisheries.
The focus on agriculture-related courses, according to Eleazar, will encourage more young blood to enter the agriculture-related profession amid the aging problem of farmers in the Philippines.

“Kaya maraming kabatataan ang ayaw kumuha ng agriculture-related courses ay dahil over the years, nagkaroon na ng pananaw na ang pagiging magsasaka sa ating bansa ay katumbas ng matinding kahirapan (A lot of young people do not want to take agriculture-related courses because over the years, there has been a misconception that those in the agriculture sector are poor)," said Eleazar.
“At natin sila masisisi dahil ang noon at hanggang ngayon, ay talagang totoo naman na kung sino pa ang nagtatanim at nangingisda ay siya pang walang makain (And we cannot blame them because even before, it is true that farmers and fishermen have nothing to eat,” he stressed.
Citing a study from the University of the Philippines Los Baños which was also cited by the Department of Agriculture, the average age of farmers in the country is 53. Their children and even the farmers themselves would not want their kids to pursue agriculture-related courses.
The worst part, according to Eleazar, is that farmers coud not even afford to send their children to senior high school and colleges.
“Ito ang tututukan at ilalaban natin, Ang mabbigyan ng dignidad ang magsasakang Pilipino upang maraming ma-encourage na mga kabataan na kumuha ng agrikultura at upang makumbinsi sila na may pera sa agrikultura (This is what we are going to fight for in the Senate--to give dignity to the farmers so that more youth will be encouraged to take agriculture and to convince them that there's money in agriculture),” said Eleazar.
He said that the additional scholarship slots for agriculture and fisheries-related courses should prioritize children of farmers and fishermen.
And aside from additional scholarship slots, Eleazar said more funds for their allowances, practical application of what they would learn and training, seminars and post-graduate scholarships should also be extended to them.