youth Archives - IITA News

ENABLE-TAAT Open Day: Reaching out to youth and farmers in Awe

The youth-in-agribusiness compact of Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) organized an Open Day for youth and farmers on 27 April. The event took place at Oyo state-IITA Youth Agribusiness Incubation Park Center (Agri-Park), Awe. The youth compact, also known as ENABLE-TAAT, presented modern agricultural technologies to participants through an exhibition of various agricultural value…

Exploring the dynamics of farm and non-farm employment among Nigerian youth

Varying factors often determine youth employment dynamics in different developing countries, ranging from economic conditions to government policies. Understanding these dynamics has continued to attract research interest due to the unabated unemployment crises in the continent, home to 50% of the world’s young population. With Africa’s workforce growing much faster than other regions in the…

Young Africa Works-IITA Project trains over a thousand youth in three centers across Nigeria

The Young Africa Works-IITA Project has concluded the first cohort of its training program, which commenced on 1 February in Lagos, Kaduna, and Kano states. The six-week training program targeted young people between 18 and 35 years. It introduced the participants to agribusiness through classroom training, practical sessions, excursions to successful agribusiness firms, mentorship, sharing…

IITA Corps members organize seminar on alleviating hunger and poverty

The IITA National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) community recently organized a one-day seminar themed “Alleviating hunger and poverty through agriculture: Today’s youth; tomorrow’s leaders” for corps members across Nigeria. The immersive full-day event took place on 15 February and aimed to motivate and empower corps members to engage in productive research and business opportunities in…

Making a case for migrants’ originating households in Malawi

According to research, migration for employment is a key feature of youth mobility in certain parts of Africa. Individuals migrate primarily to improve their social status and learn new skills and trades. Internal migration—both rural to urban and rural to rural—of youth is also increasing due to lack of employment opportunities and other factors, including…

Young Africa Works-IITA commences multilocation training for 40,000 youth

The Young Africa Works-IITA project commenced the first cohort of its training program in Lagos, Kaduna, and Kano states in Nigeria. This capacity–building activity began on 1 February and focuses on training 40,000 young Nigerian women and men between 18 and 35 years to become self-employed or gain employment in agri-food systems. The training is running concurrently in the three states for six weeks and participants will gain practical…

Access to infrastructure can increase youth engagement in agriculture

Youth unemployment remains a critical challenge in developing countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, where the youth unemployment rate is among the world’s highest. While graduate unemployment is a major concern for the Republic of Benin’s government, a study carried out under the IITA–CARE project—sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) across 10 African countries—explored factors that can influence the country’s youth to venture into agribusiness. Despite the opportunities for self-employment…

FMARD – Nigeria: IITA holds critical position in Nigeria’s agricultural sector

Mr Richard-Mark Mbaram, the Technical Adviser on Knowledge Management and Communication to Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Honorable Mohammed Sabo Nanono, has highlighted IITA’s role in the nation’s agricultural sector. He spoke on this during a visit to the Institute on 18 December 2020. According to Mbaram, the visit aimed to explore opportunities…

NYSC partners with IITA to create opportunities for Nigerian youth

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and IITA are partnering to open up opportunities to youth in Nigeria. The two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to that effect during a recent visit of the NYSC Director General, Brigadier General Shuaibu Ibrahim, to IITA Headquarters, Ibadan. IITA Deputy Director General, Partnerships for Delivery, Kenton…

Researcher and IITA-CARE awardee, Adedotun Seyingbo.

Researcher calls for intervention to promote youth engagement in agriculture

The growing population in Africa poses both opportunities and challenges for its economy. In Nigeria, more than half the population are under 30 years of age, posing a significant challenge for policymakers in providing quality jobs for these youth. However, since agriculture is a major source of employment and livelihood, youth move between farm and…