Three day dialogue on youth agribusiness strategy opens

A three day national dialogue aimed at strengthening youth participation in Ghana’s agribusiness sector opened in Accra on Monday, with stakeholders seeking to align national policies with a continental strategy to create more opportunities for young people.

The dialogue, on Domesticating the African Agribusiness Youth Strategy (AAYS) and the Youth in Agrifood Systems Performance Index (YAPI) in Ghana: Bridging Policy to Practice for Youth Participation in the Regional Continental Market, is expected to develop policy recommendations and institutional frameworks to support youth involvement in agrifood systems and agribusiness.

The programme, organised by the AGRA Ghana, with support from the Mastercard Foundation through the Youth Entrepreneurship for the Future of Food and Agriculture (YEFFA) programme, brought together youth agripreneurs, policymakers, government officials, civil society organisations, development partners and private sector actors in Accra.

Opening the dialogue, the Country Director of AGRA Ghana, Dr. Betty Annan, said the meeting marked an important step towards domesticating the African Agribusiness Youth Strategy, which had been under discussion in Ghana for more than two years.

She said the dialogue would provide a platform for stakeholders to deliberate on practical ways of translating the continental framework into Ghana specific policies, programmes and institutional arrangements that would expand opportunities for young people in agribusiness.

Dr. Annan urged participants to openly share ideas and experiences that would help shape actionable recommendations for government, saying the ultimate goal was to secure commitments that would ensure the strategy was fully implemented in Ghana.

Representing the Minister of Youth Development and Empowerment, the Acting Chief Director of the ministry, Evans Selorm Habadah, described the initiative as a demonstration of the collective resolve to place young people at the centre of Africa’s agricultural transformation.

He said the strategy reflected a shared conviction that the continent’s agricultural potential could only be fully realised when young people were empowered to innovate, add value and lead across the agrifood system.

Mr Habadah reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to strengthening its partnership with AGRA to promote youth entrepreneurship, skills development and employment in agriculture, describing agribusiness as a critical pathway for creating decent jobs and resilient local economies.

Delivering an overview of AGRA’s youth initiatives, the Country Programme Lead for AGRA Ghana, John Jagwe, said the dialogue was intended to familiarise young people with the African Agribusiness Youth Strategy, adopted by the African Union, and prepare them to take advantage of opportunities beyond Ghana’s borders.

He said the strategy would equip young agripreneurs to access regional and continental markets and financing opportunities, adding that about 300 youth leaders were participating in the dialogue and would share the knowledge gained with others across the country.

Mr Jagwe said the dialogue would also explore the linkages between the African Agribusiness Youth Strategy, the Youth in Agrifood Systems Performance Index and AGRA’s Youth Entrepreneurship for the Future of Food and Agriculture programme.

He explained that the YEFFA programme focused on creating an enabling environment for young people to thrive in agriculture, strengthening institutions that support them and ensuring that youth voices translated into concrete policy actions.

Touching on sustainability, Mr Jagwe said increasing population growth, climate change and the degradation of natural resources underscored the need to prepare young people to build resilient food systems capable of feeding the continent in the future.

He commended the collaboration between AGRA and the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment, saying the partnership had advanced youth focused initiatives, including a national youth database, an agriculture focused media campaign and support for government programmes to expand opportunities for young people in the sector..

BY TIMES REPORTER

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