The Mediae , a company that focuses on Media for Education and Development in Africa, has successfully broadcasted a tailor made farming show to the East African Countries.  The broadcast program Shamba Shape Up is an interactive forum for farmers where a farmer is featured and is able to get extension services needed to help him/her achieve the yields that they desire from their farms. This  access... Continue reading

Back in 2015 As an undergraduate, my practical involvement in agriculture has taught me that agricultural practice goes beyond the four walls of the classroom.  Combining both the practical experience and theoretical learning is essential to conceive practical ways to support agriculture. Let me introduce you to my initiative, called AgrindusNetwork, started in 2015. It is a paradigm shift from the... Continue reading

We are delighted to welcome our YPARD Europe Coordinator: Libuška Valešová Libuška is a member of the Department of Economics and Development at the Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences at the Czech University of Life Sciences (CULS) which is just days short of becoming a hosting institution for the YPARD Europe. The  CULS’s Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences (FTA) partners closely with numerous key... Continue reading

Kakamega county is a high populated zone with wonderful weather conditions and well surrounded with tropical rain forest in Kenya. In this County, Poultry keeping was taken as a cultural practice during ancient time of our ancestors a reason why the farmers find difficult to adapt this resource to the current market needs. Indeed, the region is unable to feed itself... Continue reading

A few weeks back a program was organized in four major cities of Pakistan namely Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Faisalabad. The program was meant to celebrate the 10 years of success for YPARD which proved to be highly inspirational amongst the youth. Few years back, an instructor approached me via social media inviting me to participate as an aspirant in an... Continue reading

India, a land of 1.31 billion human population and 512.05 million livestock population scattered in an area of 3.29 million sq. km. makes it one of the most crowded places on the planet. Among the large animal population, 37.28% are cattle, 21.23% buffaloes, 12.71% sheep, 26.40% goats and 2.01% pigs, which is one of the densest in terms of animal per... Continue reading

On March 9th, I attended the CGIAR-NARO Stakeholder Consultation Workshop themed “Future of Agriculture Research in Uganda”  in Kampala, Uganda. The meeting was attended by different stakeholders representing researchers, Non Governmental Organisations, development agencies, farmers’ organizations and private sector. I was excited to form part of this diverse group as YPARD representative. The overall objective of the consultation was to carry... Continue reading

In order to celebrate the young professionals for agricultural development (YPARD)’s 10 years of key milestones, we have prepared an infographic and a video that will lead you through YPARD’s progress in enhancing youth participation in the sector. Find out the development of YPARD since its beginnings. It includes the building of YPARD Structure on national, regional and global level, with... Continue reading

Three months since YPARD announced its 2016 anniversary, celebratory content is still streaming in. In March 2016, we take you through the video lens of YPARD Trinidad and Tobago under the leadership of  Keron Bascombe who shares his experiences as a YPARD member and aTrinidad and Tobago representative over the last three years. YPARD has been a major contributor in providing... Continue reading

As a student of agricultural science, I always aspire to work on and get updated about research and development activities carried out  around the globe. My search of support for assisting me in my personal and professional development came to a beautiful end when I got an opportunity to know in detail about the elite platform YPARD from respected brother and... Continue reading

In one month, the GCARD3 Global event will be kicking off. GCARD3 is not a mere event, it is a process. While the preparation of the global event involves shaping up the program and the delegations, the communications coverage, logistics and tutti quanti, collective agricultural development directions are already discussed throughout national and regional consultations, ahead of the global event. At... Continue reading

The GCARD3 Global event is pioneering a stronger involvement of the youth in global agricultural discussions by giving them leading roles in the core conference. Young people will be able to bring youth perspectives to the forefront as plenary speakers, catalysts, and as GCARD partner on behalf of YPARD: young professionals for agricultural development. Meet them: Youth at the Partner Assembly Seven YPARD... Continue reading

From 2nd – 3rd March, 2016, Ghana research stakeholders converged at Coconut grove Hotel in Accra   for a National Consultation Workshop on Developing an Integration Plan and Coordination Mechanism for CGIAR Research to Support Agricultural Development in Ghana.This workshop was at the invitation of the consortium on CGIAR organisations in Ghana. The CGIAR is a worldwide partnership of 15 Centres addressing agricultural research... Continue reading

My grand parents still living in a rural area called Zaouit Sidi Hamza, this one of many marginalized areas in the regions of Midelt city, which is located in the center south of Morocco,every year I used to visit them and I touch their suffering in their livelihood. All the people especially the youth there complain about the indifference that they... Continue reading

With a BSc in zoology, one will wonder how I found my self in agriculture. Upon my graduation, all I thought of was conserving endangered species around the world. Today, my passion for agriculture has grown so much that all I think about is how to make small holder farmer’s lives better. With no academic background in agriculture, all I had... Continue reading

The CGIAR Research Program (CRP) Phase-I is about to end very soon and Phase-II will be starting from 2017. CGIAR centers (Bioversity, CIFOR, CIMMYT, ICARDA, IRRI, IFPRI and IWMI) all working together in Nepal with the vision of freedom from poverty; hunger and environmental degradation were the organizers of a day long Consultation Meeting on Site Integration of CGIAR on 11th... Continue reading

“I am a policy maker for climate change, but I do not have any knowledge of local realities. I need to learn from case studies and hearing from local farmers how they cope with climate change” this was one of the representative voices that rose frequently in the 2015 Youth in Landscape Initiative workshop at Global Landscape Forum (GLF) in Paris. ... Continue reading

“There is no lasting peace without jobs. Decent jobs are necessary for a just society and a sustainable route out of poverty.” Mpenga Kabundi, Retired – Deputy Regional Director, Africa. Indeed, the world, especially the youth need more decent jobs. When Agriculture is taken as a business, it becomes attractive to the youth, and they utilize their potential to venture into... Continue reading

The agricultural sector has the greatest potential to uplift the African economy and address global food shortages, but foreign investors are increasingly choosing Africa as a lucrative opportunity, depriving people of their land and water. Governments have failed to convert the wealth created by economic growth into the opportunities that all Africans can exploit to build a better future. If African... Continue reading

I have been a member of the Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD) since its inception due to a shared conviction that a more sustainable and innovative agricultural sector is one that truly incorporates views of youth and involves them in developing its future. Although I have been involved in some YPARD related activities in my own subtle ways, now more... Continue reading