07 September 2016 — 524 Filipino student-trainees from Israel’s Agrostudies On-the-Job Training (OJT) Program were among the graduates at the commencement ceremonies held on September 1 at the Jerusalem International Convention Center.
The Philippines has the most number of graduates for this year’s Agrostudies Program, which also hosted 900 other students of agriculture schools from other countries in Asia and Africa.
Ambassador Neal Imperial joined CHED Commissioner Ruperto Sangalang and the Presidents of Tarlac Agricultural University, Misamis Oriental State College of Agriculture and Technology, Bataan Peninsula State University and Sultan Kudarat State University in gracing the graduation ceremony.
The Filipino students, who come from different agriculture universities and colleges in the Philippines, completed their 11-month course of combined academic learning and practical work which exposed them to the latest agro-based technology and techniques being utilized by farms in Israel. The students were situated in the most enabling and stimulating learning environment, allowing them to benefit from the most advanced agricultural working methods.
The program offered the Filipino students the opportunity to study at specialized agricultural academic centers and work in modern farms throughout Israel to learn practical lessons in various fields such as citrus farming, horticulture, mushroom cultivation, dairy production, poultry growing and agricultural pollination employing the latest Israeli modern technology.
Ms. Michelle Rafael, a fourth year college student taking up Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from Tarlac Agricultural University, was awarded the Excellence for Extra-Curricular Activities. She was assigned to undergo her training in dairy production at the Meshek Hirsh Company, located in southern Israel. In her message delivered during the graduation program, Ms. Rafael shared the following advice to her fellow students:
“As we prepare to move on to the next stage in our lives, I encourage you to reflect upon our experiences here in Israel, and consider how we can best utilize this valuable training in the future. We have had the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills that we would not have been able to acquire in our countries. I believe that these experiences have helped us grow. We are now in the perfect position to give back to and serve as leaders in our local communities. To accomplish these forward-looking goals, we need to do our job as agriculturists in our country.”
This year is the 11th batch of Filipino student-trainees of the Agrostudies Program in Israel. Since 2005, the Philippines has sent a total of 2,779 Filipino student-trainees to Israel to participate in this program.
The Philippine Embassy considers the Agrostudies Program an important pillar of Philippines-Israel development cooperation in the field of agriculture. END
