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July 20, 2017
Young chefs cook for their future in Samoa



In Samoa, a small island development state in the Pacific Ocean, almost three-quarters of the population is under 30. However, youth unemployment rates are double the national unemployment rate. To help the government tackle this challenge, the UN Sustainable Development Goals Fund (SDG Fund) is creating employment opportunities for young people in organic farming, and promoting public-private partnerships in key sectors such as tourism and agriculture. A dozen young men and women graduating in catering and cooking thanks to a SDG Fund’s program represent the face of new opportunities for youth in Samoa.

The Samoan Culinary Association, through its ‘Grass Roots Cookery Training’ courses, collaborates with the SDG Fund joint programme, “Engaging Youth in Samoa in Organic Farming and Menus,” by placing unemployed youths in the country's restaurant kitchens, offering them theoretical and practical training, and giving them a chance to work. The first promotion of chefs took place in August 2016, after a 12-week internship in local kitchens of Savaii and Apia.

During that time, they acquired skills in cooking and baking, as well as in food security, food costs and first aid techniques. Other course highlights were the modules on positive life and work skills. But more importantly, as their organizers point out, 100% of the students have obtained full-time jobs in the restaurants where they trained.



The future of Samoan cuisine

During the graduation ceremony, Chef Joe Lam, owner of the Scalinis restaurant and chairman of the Samoan Culinary Association, and chef Michael Hardy, executive chef of the restaurant Tanoa Tusitala and vice-president of the Samoan Culinary Association, thanked the many businesses, hotels, restaurants and resorts that supported the apprentices. "Without these partners, who shared their time, experience, products and free tutoring with apprentices, the program would not be possible,” Chef Hardy said. “With their dedication and belief in the program, 12 young men and women are now employed full-time and have a brilliant future in front of them."

Chef Lam said: “These new cooks are the future of Samoan culinary industry and as trained kitchen staff they fill a great need. They can now help and assist in their kitchens and if they persist in their work, then they can undertake further study and become fully qualified chefs." As a culmination of the event, young graduates received a full cook’s uniform as well as a set of chef knives to help them in their new careers.

With their dedication and belief in the program, 12 young men and women are now employed full-time and have a brilliant future in front of them

Joe Lam
Chef and Chairman of the Samoan Culinary Association

From farm to table

The joint programme, which is supported by the Spanish Cooperation through its initial contribution to the SDG Fund, is implemented by the two UN agencies, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), in partnership with ministries of the Government of Samoa and the National Youth Council of Samoa. Its aim is to combat youth unemployment and its negative impact on the country’s economic and social development through ecological agriculture, applying the "from farm to table" approach.

The programme focuses on large-scale participation of young people in organic farming as a sustainable and viable commercial base through the development of a processing facility that provides training, transfer of knowledge and employment for young people. The program also strengthens the institutional capacity of local organizations to respond to young people's needs for information and employment in the field of organic farming.