Youth Agripreneurs Archives

Picture of team from SPDC having a taste of Plantain Wine

SPDC and IYA explore areas of collaboration

The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria and the IITA Youth Agripreneurs are discussing the development of a model that will incubate young farmers.

Picture of Exhibition stand of IITA, HarvestPlus, and Youth Agripreneurs.

IYA Kinshasa participates in second edition of International Agricultural Fair of Kinshasa

The IITA Kinshasa Youth Agripreneurs (IYAKIN) participated in the second edition of the International Agricultural Fair of Kinshasa (FAIKIN), 18-27 August.

Picture of Two youth involved in agribusiness in Kamu, Bulambuli District, on the slopes of Mt. Elgon.

Youth agribusiness in Uganda: The importance of engaging youth in agricultural enterprises

Maya Turolla, a PhD candidate at the University of Bologna and Radboud University in Nijmegen, collaborated with IITA in Uganda to study how the drive to engage youth in agriculture is materializing in terms of development projects and the role these projects play in the lives of these youth.

Picture of agripreneurs showing off the fish ponds.

IITA opens another incubation center!

In 6 months, a group of IITA Youth Agripreneurs (IYA) has developed another thriving agribusiness center in Imo State, southeastern Nigeria.

Picture of Ms Jacinta Ezurike showing participants how to make various value-added products.

Capacity of youth in agribusiness gets a boost

About 38 youth drawn from Onne, Rivers State, were trained on agribusiness and entrepreneurship and improved agronomic practices and value addition for cassava and plantain/banana.

Picture of DG Sanginga and an Agripreneur presents a plaque to HE, Kemi Adeosun.

Nigerian Finance Minister: ENABLE Youth should be rolled out

The Nigerian Minister of Finance, Honorable Kemi Adeosun, visited IITA on 10 June to look at the IITA Agripreneurs Program (IYA) and learn more about the African Development Bank-funded ENABLE Youth (Empowering Novel Agri-Business-Led Employment) Program.

Picture of agripreneur shows propagation activities for cucumber.

IITA establishes two incubation centers for IYA initiative in Imo state, Nigeria

Nteranya Sanginga, IITA Director General, goes on a 2-day site visit on 8 -9 May to inspect the progress made on the development of two new agribusiness incubation centers spearheaded by the IITA Youth Agripreneurs (IYA) in Imo state.

Picture of Chief Ogbeh chatting with the agripreneurs

Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture urges youth to prop agriculture

Chief Audu Ogbeh, Nigeria’s Honorable Minister of Agriculture (HMA), has urged the IITA Youth Agripreneurs in the IITA-Onne station to produce large volumes of improved suckers, pledging government’s commitment to procure the inputs.

Picture of DDG Kenton Dashiell welcoming and addressing the youth delegates

Nigeria Youth Parliament visit IITA

On 20 April, Rt. Hon Ayodele Obe, the newly elected Speaker of the Nigerian youth parliament (NYP) led youth delegates from Ondo, Katsina, Imo, Oyo, Kwara, Lagos, and Ogun states to IITA-Ibadan to kick-start collaboration with the IITA Youth Agripreneurs (IYA).

Picture of The Zambia IITA Youth Agripreneurs (ZIYA) Program successfully conducted a training course on cassava value addition for 11 ZIYA members―all female―on 6–16 March at the IITA Southern Africa Research and Administration Hub (SARAH) campus in Kabangwe, Lusaka Province. The 11 women came from different youth groups from Kaoma District in Western Province, Monze District in Southern Province, and Serenje and Mkushi districts in Central Province partnering under the ZIYA umbrella. T he training course was conducted with support from the Support to Agricultural Research for Development of Strategic Crops in Africa (SARD-SC) project. Facilitators included Emmanuel Alamu, Food Scientist; Prisca Chileshe, Postharvest Utilization Research Assistant; Nhamo Nhamo, ZIYA Youth Coordinator; and Jeremiah Hantolo, Zambia SARD-SC Maize Coordinator, all based at IITA-SARAH. The 10-day, hands-on course covered the various steps in preparing cassava-based food products―from root preparation (cleaning, peeling, chipping, and drying) to processing and cooking/ baking. Specifically, the youth were taught how to make confectionary products such as biscuits, chin-chin, fritters, titbits, and cupcakes. At the end of the training, the trainees presented the different food products that they had produced to IITA-Zambia staff as well as to Hilde Koper-Limbourg, Deputy Director General for Corporate Services, who coincidentally was also in Zambia on a familiarization and monitoring trip to the southern Africa Hub. “These are very impressive products that you have prepared,” David Chikoye, IITA Southern Africa Regional Director, said during the presentation by the trainees. “I sincerely hope that you will apply what you’ve learned here―and what you will still learn in the future from ZIYA―in your respective groups when you go back,” he added. “These are really delicious,” added Koper-Limbourg. “I see a really good business opportunity for these products, and a great business venture for the ZIYA youth. You should be proud of yourselves and what you have accomplished here.” Asked what they will do with the knowledge that they gained from this training, Caroline Liwena, ZIYA Youth Chair, who also participated in the course, related that they would also train other members of their respective youth groups. “Apart from echo training, we will also start some small businesses producing and selling these food products. And, of course, start making money,” she proudly added.

Zambia IITA Agripreneurs Program train 11 youth on cassava-based food production

The Zambia IITA Youth Agripreneurs (ZIYA) Program successfully conducted a training course on cassava value addition for 11 ZIYA members―all female―on 6–16 March at the IITA Southern Africa Research and Administration Hub (SARAH) campus in Kabangwe, Lusaka Province.