The African Development Bank (AfDB) has called for global support for Africa’s young farmers and “agripreneurs”, highlighting how agribusiness is the answer to the continent’s youth employment. In collaboration with the Initiative for Global Development, the Association of African Agricultural Professionals in the Diaspora, Michigan State University, Iowa State University, and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, the AfDB brought together stakeholders to discuss how to expand economic opportunities for Africa’s youth throughout the agricultural value chain, from lab to farm to fork. “Africa’s next billionaires are not going to come from oil, gas, or the extractives. ENABLE Youth is about investing in small agribusinesses today so that they can grow into large enterprises tomorrow,” Akinwumi Adesina (pictured above), the AfDB president said at the event. “By empowering youth at each stage of the agribusiness value chain, we enable them to establish viable and profitable agribusinesses, jobs and better incomes for themselves and their communities.” Adesina was presenting a paper during a session titled “Making Farming Cool: Investing in future African farmers and Agripreneurs” on the sideline of the 2017 World Food Prize Symposium-Borlaug Dialogue in Des Moines, Iowa in the US. It was attended by young entrepreneurs from Africa private sector representatives, policymakers and thought leaders, among others. Africa has the world’s youngest population with 60 per cent being under 35 years old. There are 420 million youth aged 15-35 and this segment of the population is expected to double to 840 million by 2040. Working with the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, the African Development Bank is empowering young farmers under the Empowering Novel Agri-Business-Led Employment (ENABLE) Youth programme. He explained how attracting a new cadre of young, energetic and talented agripreneurs is an urgent priority. Recent studies indicate that as African economies transform, there are expanding opportunities for youth employment and entrepreneurship throughout high-potential value chains – literally from lab to fork – where consumer demand is increasing, including horticulture, dairy, oilseeds, poultry and aquaculture. In addition, there are huge opportunities for engaging African youth in services and logistical sectors in key off-farm activities such as transportation, packaging, ICT and other technology development and light infrastructure – that add value to on-farm productivity and efficiency, in ways that could not be envisioned before. The whole idea of connecting farms to markets, particularly rising urban and regional markets, is where Africa needs to plug in this bulging youth population, Adesina said.
