Osam Abdulmumen fled Sudan at the age of 18.

Now, seven years later, he herds sheep and goats in Castile-La Mancha, a region in Spain, known for its Manchego cheese.

Osam participated in a government program in which migrants are trained as shepherds to tackle rural depopulation and job shortages.

Farms like this one in Spain’s heartland are having a harder and harder time finding workers.

For decades, young people have left Spain’s countryside for its cities in search of work, studies and more opportunities.

Combined with an aging population that has left many farms needing more hands.

Now, these migrants from countries in Africa, Latin America and elsewhere are getting trained to fill this gap.

For 25 hours, students learn how to harness, shear, milk and muster sheep and goats.

That includes a day of on-site training at a farm to put to test what they’ve learned in the classroom.

Since 2022, about 460 students have gone through the program.

Like Osam, who said he left home because of the violence in his country, many asylum seekers are refugees.

If students complete the program successfully, and have legal authorization to work in Spain, they can be paired with nearby livestock farms looking for hands.

Osam said he had received asylum in Spain.

AP video by Bernat Armangue