We all know that ICT in Agriculture is not a new thing and it has the potential to build up a better, smarter and more sustainable food production. We also know there's a lot more that can, and should be done, for improving global knowledge level about it. But for now, i will concentrate on the youth needs here. From June... More

Never doubt the power of the right question asked at the right moment. “Who is YPARD Kenya?” asked Monica Kapiriri, a trainer with the African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD). The question put a pause on the conversation immediately. Here we were, the mentors and mentees, gathered in Naivasha, Kenya as part of the closing workshop of YPARD’s face-to-face... More

At the occasion of YPARD 10 years, GFAR Foresight Advisor Robin Bourgeois projects the plausible futures of YPARD as a movement as well as young people involvement in agriculture in the next ten years. I am finally back in 2016 after having had the privilege of traveling in four different plausible futures, where I met outstanding YPARD members yesterday, the 3... More

Agriculture is the backbone of the Nepalese economy accounting for on average 60% of the Gross Domestic Product. It goes without saying that agriculture is the chief contributor for nutrition for many households.  On a nutritional point of view, Nepal produces various kinds of nutritious foods but the lack of information about their nutritional value has hindered their growth. I believe,... More

Today the world is rapidly growing but deep insights tell us that the real riches are not growing at all.A common man who works the whole day and earns just a mere satiable income is standing at the same place where he was standing some few years ago. The more deprived are the poor people, who although have a roof over... More

This blogpost by Arsène Birindwa originally appeared on the FARA blog. Malgré “le vaste potentiel agricole dont dispose l’Afrique”, expression me paraissant de plus en plus “lapalissade” la faim et la malnutrition persistent sur le continent. En 2003, les chefs d’État africains avaient pris l’engagement de consacrer 10 pourcent de leur budget national à l’agriculture « conscients» de son l’importance dans... More

This blogpost by Fred Shema originally appeared on the FARA blog. The biggest challenge Africa is facing is its high level of youth unemployment. 60% of of the unemployed in the continent are youth. And youth constitute 40% of the continent’s population. African countries, institutions and partners are striving to reverse this negative trend, through different programs: Youth in Africa are... More

This blogpost by Olivier Ngwije originally appeared on the FARA blog Africa must work hard to increase agriculture production to reduce poverty and promote economic growth, says Dr Chiji Ojukwu, Director of the Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department, at the African Development Bank (AfDB). This was Dr Ojukwu’s message to participants attending the 7th Africa Agriculture Science Week in Kigali Rwanda. Through advocacy... More

This blogpost by Djamila Mathu originally appeared on the FARA blog In Egypt, a desert country that gets almost all its water from the Nile, the scarcity of water has become a challenge in agriculture. Climate change is worsening the problem through rising temperature and loss of agriculture land. However a new irrigation technology may soon change that. In collaboration with science... More

This blogpost by Abe Oluwayomi Kayode originally appeared on the FARA blog A lecturer, Head of the mechanization department in the College of Agriculture at University of Rwanda, has found interesting ways to reduce the drudgery often faced by farmers in their various farming and non-farming operations.  Dr. Deepak Das, together with his final year students, have designed innovative machines and equipment which can... More

"What's easier than uploading a picture online", you say? And indeed, we *all* think we rock at it...but let's be honest: we don't...Do you have an eye for quality pictures? Do you know how to resize them without distorting them? Do you know that there are a number of rules and rights around pictures that you should not deny...  Join the... More

Open access has been a positive force in scientific publishing.  But, the removal of paywalls and restrictive licencing are not the only issues that need to be tackled; unnecessary delays to publication, irreproducible findings, publication biases, and poor access to underlying data and code also need to be addressed. This is especially important in agriculture and nutrition research where quick, unrestricted... More

Since 2015, YPARD Ph members have been part of conferences, such as the YPARD Asia Pacific Conference, GCARD3 Bangkok Regional Consultation, ADB Asian Irrigation Forum, and GCARD3 Global Event. In addition, the team has also been involved in trainings like the GFAR-hosted social media training/bootcamp in Bangkok last year and this year's pre-GCARD3.  To help share the expiriences from these events... More

How does it feel to have a room where like minded African young people come together for a discussion and debate full experiential learning from one another?  Imagine for a moment when you have a world where professionals of your ages from a multiple backgrounds come together to question, answer or share their experiences on a given weekly theme? If that... More

This blogpost by Rustam Ibragimov originally appeared on the GFAR blog. Dear Sir/Madam, We are pleased to invite you to participate in the training Integrating gender and nutrition issues in agricultural extension systems… With this letter of invitation, I got an opportunity to participate in the practical training-workshop organized by INGENAES and CAC-FRAS where different stakeholders were involved. After completing it, I had the usual... More

Duncan Cheruiyot is one of the YPARD Face to Face program mentee.At the occasion of YPARD 10 years, Duncan tells how he got involved with YPARD, how the mentoring program has shaped up to become a strong YPARD component and how it has benefited him personally. One random online search in 2014 of agricultural programs involving young people led me to... More

For many years, agriculture has been referred to as an ageing profession with a majority of young people choosing it as the last option.  Ask any young person in their formative years what they want to be when they grow up and initial answers like doctors, engineers, pilots will most definitely float in the air. This begs the question, is agriculture... More

NO, conferences about “How to feed 9 billion by 2050?” do not have to be boring, grey haired, PowerPoint- followed by - PowerPoint and 100 - times - already - heard - solutions.  They can be- YES! – A great party, inspiring, motivating, ideas generating, fresh and juicy! That’s how I’ve experienced the Thought for Food Global Summit 2016 which succeeded... More

Allan Migwi is one of the YPARD Face to Face program mentee.At the occasion of YPARD 10 years, Allan tells how he got involved with YPARD, how the mentoring program has shaped up to become a strong YPARD component and how it has benefited him personally. I first heard about YPARD through social media (Facebook to be precise) after my classmate... More

In Africa, Agriculture is wider than just a profession; it is a culture. It is a treasure handed down to us by God through our ancestors. With it many lives were and are still being transformed, many stories have been re-written and nations built. The western countries are what they are today and are still surviving as a result of the... More