Young farmers within the Northern Grampians Shire are being encouraged to apply for the state government’s 2019 Upskill and Invest – Young Farmers Scholarships.
$500,000 will be invested into the scholarship program over the next four years, with up to $10,000 per scholarship available to young people to help continue developing the skills they need to build a successful career in agriculture.
Each recipient can receive up to $5,000 to support their training and study, followed by up to a further $5,000 to put their new skills into practice.
To qualify, applicants need to be aged 35 years and younger, with at least two years experience on-farm and be working in a food and fibre farm business in Victoria at least three days a week for the past three months.
Applications close at 5pm Friday 9 August 2019.
Kara Kara Ward Councillor, Cr Tony Driscoll said, “We’ve got a lot of young farmers in our shire at the moment, which is really encouraging.”
“We certainly urge all of our young farmers to apply, as it’s a great opportunity to not only get some financial assistance, but upskill themselves at the same time.”
Minister for Agriculture, Jaclyn Symes said, “Young farmers today need a broad range of skills to keep up with a changing industry – and Labor’s Young Farmers Scholarship program will make sure they’re supported to keep learning and growing.”
“The program is part of our commitment to attract and support the next generation of farmers, and make sure we keep producing the agricultural talent our growing $14.1 billion industry needs.”
