Over 500 youths attended the 8th Edition of Youth Town Hall at The Prime Minister’sOffice co-organized by the Young Professionals Network (YPN) Brunei and the Ministry of Culture, Youthand Sports and supported by the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism.
The Youth Town Hall Brunei is a platform set up in 2020 by the Youth Professionals Network, in conjunction with the National Youth Day to inculcate a solution driven, forward thinking mindset and collaborative youth community who are passionate about contributing to our national development by providing youth theopportunity to interact constructively with our Ministers and Senior Officials.
The 8th Edition themed, “Youth in Action: Powering Brunei’s Economic Future” saw an opening remark by Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr. Haji Abdul Manaf bin Haji Metussin, Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism which later followed with a dialogue with Yang Berhormat Minister of Primary
Resources and Tourism, moderated by Dr. Muhammad Nuriskandar bin Mohd Hasnan. In his opening remarks, Yang Berhormat Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism highlighted that “Brunei Darussalam has entered a phase where economic diversification is no longer just a policy direction, it is a national responsibility that requires participation from every generation…Youth participation, although still at an early stage, is a promising indicator that Brunei's youth are becoming more aware of the opportunities within the primary resources sector, opportunities not only to earn income, but also to contribute to food security, strengthen halal agri-food exports, and support national economic diversification.”
The Youth Town Hall saw over 14 questions in the two hour session with questions ranging from policy to protect local products and farmers, support of almost extinct craftsmanships, how local farmers can benefit from Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs), funding and support to the grassroot community, among others.
During the session Yang Berhormat Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism reminded youth to not make qualifications or lack of, as barriers to venture into agriculture where the Minister emphasised that despite the potential mismatch of skills or background, youth can still pursue agriculture with curiosity as agriculture industry is the most adaptable industry in Brunei Darussalam with processing of food productscontributing to creating employment and revenue generation.
When responding to the inquiry from the participants on government initiatives to support farmers, Yang Berhormat Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism shared the various initiatives to support local entrepreneurs and farmers including platforms to sell produce at cost-efficient costs, training processesand systems in-suit to support farmers in Brunei. These governmental resources provided to farmers are aimed to support local processing of food products and produce. Subsequently, ensuring employmentopportunities and revenue generation for local entrepreneurs.
On tourism, Yang Berhormat Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism highlighted that Brunei is positioning itself in the global travel market with clear ambitions to generate around BND 1.1 billion in tourism revenue by 2035.
The Youth Town Hall Brunei continues to be an initiative co-organized by the Young Professionals Network (YPN) and by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports which aims to provide youth with the knowledge, tools and empowerment to contribute to economic and social growth of Brunei proactively, innovativelyand dynamically.
To date, the Youth Town Hall Brunei has brought together 12 Ministers and over 4,000 youth in 8 sessions.“While Brunei is blessed with abundant natural resources like oil and gas, fisheries, and forests, it is time we shine the spotlight on another critical resource: our young people. Bruneian youth are already breaking barriers, innovating in sectors such as smart farming, aquaculture, eco-tourism, and the creative economy.Now is the moment to elevate their role in building a sustainable and dynamic economic future.
We are pleased with the turnout of today’s Youth Town Hall Brunei and hope to continue the discussion in the coming future, especially Wawasan 2035 less than a decade away. We believe the need to involve youth in shaping and driving economic transformation as our vision cannot be realized without the meaningful participation of youth, alongside government, private, and civil society sectors.” Mohammad Ashmeer Imtiaz Ahmad, Project Lead for Youth Town Hall & CoFounder, Young Professionals Network BN.
