The euphoria that has been encapsulated within the term ‘Africa Rising’ according to researchers is attributed to Africa’s expanding middle class and the development of information and communications technologies.  This is crucial for the growth and development of Africa’s economy. However, as the internet continues to expand to even the remotest parts of the global South and with such optimism, women... Continue reading

Small towns have always been overlooked as a place for opportunities, in comparison to big cities.  The UN-Habitat report predicted 2/3 of the world population to live in cities by 2030, which threatens an unprecedented pressure on resources and infrastructure. However, there are also opportunities for development, which behooves as to explore what the future can be for small and medium-sized... Continue reading

Today’s agriculture is totally different from past years of farming.  Though the transition process is slow, gradually, young people are adopting Information Communication Technology (ICT) and innovations whilst, fading off traditional farming practices and techniques. In most African countries, the average age of farmers is 60 years old, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). These set of people... Continue reading

Last January we conceived and put in place an on-site mentoring program along with the Living Territories conference. Let us share with you what we learned from this experience: We are YPARD Serbia and YPARD France representatives, both of us are based in Montpellier so it is easy for us to work together to put in place common YPARD activities. Last... Continue reading

Collecting rainwater in barrels for outdoor use is an appreciated practice.  As interest has grown in home gardening and locally grown food, so has the popularity and interest in rain barrels for garden watering. However, our attention is often focused on collecting water, its cleanliness, and installing the collection/distribution system when it should be on water movement. It’s not entirely our... Continue reading

Today’s youth have experienced more rapid change than any previous generation. According to the United Nations, in 2016 there was 71 million youth unemployed globally. While there are many reasons for migration, the search for work continues to be a significant driver. This youth demographic is a particularly important one as ideas around migration are shaped at a young age. With... Continue reading

“Question your answers” – Jeffrey Campbell, Manager of Forest and Farm Facility at FAO The halting deforestation conference commenced with young people across sectors learning, engaging and collaborating.  The scene was set with leading professionals sharing insights on issues affecting forests. There was great emphasis on the need to push our boundaries as young professionals and in ensuring that we bring... Continue reading

As a youth delegate, I got an opportunity to represent YPARD Moldova and YPARD Europe at the youth uniting sectors to halt deforestation capacity development workshop and conference.  The conference was organized by IFSA - International Forestry Students' Association, Global Landscapes Forum, Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), hosted at Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Rome, Italy.I’ve... Continue reading

From February 14th to 16th, over 130 participants from 25 countries gathered in Addis Ababa to confirm partners and priorities at the launch meeting of the CGIAR Research Program on Grain Legumes and Dryland Cereals (GLDC). Dr Peter Carberry, the Director of GLDC, set the framework from the start, underlining that the Program’s approach is how it can add value to... Continue reading

As every January, resolutions for the New Year storm in our brain as we try to prioritize efforts, plans, and ambitions. With this in mind, YPARD Netherlands’ working team could not help but wonder. What about the young professionals in agriculture? What are they up to? What are their and our needs and objectives for 2018? In other words, what are... Continue reading

My name is Gilbert Tarus and I hail from Kenya. I am twenty years old and I finished my secondary education in 2013. I was unable to further my education because I had four other siblings in secondary school and being the eldest, I decided to give them an opportunity to also finish their secondary education. I decided to go into... Continue reading

Nourishing, vibrant, and served without pretension, here is our own recipe for preparing a very nice mentoring program. Because we’ve discovered that leading a mentoring program is like being a chef. It is like cooking. You first make sure that you have a good kitchen available: we had the Living territories conference that was a perfect framework. Then you check you... Continue reading

We are delighted to welcome the new YPARD Nigeria Country Representative, Eric Nyikwagh. Eric is a graduate of the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Nigeria with a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics & Extension. His undergraduate project research was focused on production and marketing technologies of citrus farmers in Benue state, Nigeria. He has been a committed member of YPARD since 2013.... Continue reading

Nikita Bhusal born and raised in the land of divinity, Nepal.  She completed her Bachelor Degree in Food Technology with the concentration on food quality, food microbiology, nutrition and food engineering from Purbanchal University. Her major area of interest includes; food, agriculture, nutrition, food-nutritional security, climate and youth.  She is currently working as a Capacity Building and Database Management Intern in... Continue reading

Abhishek Khadka is from Dharan which is the located in eastern region of Nepal. He has a masters degree in Food Technology from Tribhuvan University Nepal with a strong focus on Tea, Coffee and Dairy Technology. He is interested in researching the fields of food chemistry and nutrition and has presented some of his research in different national and international conferences. He... Continue reading

My name is Pilirani Khoza. I come from the warm heart of Africa- a country called Malawi. I was selected as a young leader for the Young Africa Works Summit 2017 held in Kigali, Rwanda. Apart from being a speaker at the summit, I was also privileged to get attached to Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD) and thereafter became a... Continue reading

We all know that young people can bring so much to agriculture with hard work, knowledge and innovation. Young farmers help agriculture directly, but, did you know there are so many ways the youth can help to create better local food production indirectly? Many young people are considering farming as their future working place, however, some of them lack the know-how about... Continue reading

Being both an agribusiness student and researcher at the International Center for Agribusiness Research and Education (ICARE), I had a chance to participate in EIT Food Entrepreneurship Winter School. EIT Food is a consortium of 50 partners from leading businesses, research centres and universities across 13 countries. EIT Food’s vision is to put Europe at the centre of a global revolution... Continue reading

On February 2017, forty-seven African youth attended the MasterCard Foundation’s Young Africa Works Summit (YAW2017) in Kigali, Rwanda. Fourteen of those youth delegates were selected to receive 12 months of mentoring from senior delegates attending the Summit. Over the last months, these youth mentees have started forming relationships with their mentors who will support and challenge them during this year to take their next steps in... Continue reading

There are more young people in the world than ever before; 1.8 billion young people between the ages of 10 and 24, according to UN estimates. For some, this presents an unprecedented potential for economic and social progress. For Africa, however, the world’s youngest region and home to over 200 million young people, this could easily be a ticking time bomb. According... Continue reading