Agripreneurship Alliance

Growing the Agripreneurs of the Future

Welcome

Welcome
Welcome to the home page of the Agripreneurship Alliance.  This is the first stage of developing a website that will act as a portal to and a repository of information, tools and resources designed to support young adults become entrepreneurs in Agriculture and Agribusiness.

The Agripreneurship Alliance is a partnership drawn from around the world including Business, Universities and Non Governmental Organisations (NGO's) who all have a shared vision of thriving rural communities that are supported by successful youth-driven businesses within the local and global food system.

The Agripreneurship Alliance launched as an Swiss-based non-profit Association, based in Montreux, in August 2017. We have an exciting future ahead of us as we work with our partners to develop web-based tools, resources and courses that can be used in training institutions and universities across sub-Saharan Africa.

A core focus has been to work with partners to develop a unique cloud-based agripreneurship programme that will take the budding agripreneur through the business start-up process and develop a suite of business start-up guides to help inspire and guide young Agripreneurs.  In addition, we will build a network of experts who are willing to share their knowledge by responding to 'Ask the Expert' type requests from young Agripreneurs and also recruit a team of volunteers who can share their skills and experience to support young Agripreneurs develop their business ideas through short-term coaching and mentoring.  

In 2018 we were delighted to work with SIANI and our partners at Egerton and Laikipia Universities (Kenya), Gulu University and IITA Kampala (Uganda) and ISTVS (Somaliland) to roll-out a pilot 'Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness' blended learning course to enable students to develop high quality business plans within the agrifood sector.  

After reviewing the impact of this pilot, we worked hard to review and re-design the "Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness" programme to better meet the needs of participants and institutions. This course is now being taught in several universities in Uganda, Kenya and Somaliland and is being offered, for the first time, as an online course for individual remote study.

Why Agripreneurship?

The continent of Africa is at an exciting and challenging point in its economic development but continues to face such challenges as poverty, malnutrition, conflict, climate change and a growing youth population.  

However, there are significant local and global strategic initiatives that aim to address such issues, including the Sustainable Development Goals, the African Union's Agenda 2063 Framework and the African Development Banks’ Feed Africa strategy.  

It is worth recognising that:
 In 2015, 226 million youth aged 15-24 lived in Africa, accounting for 19 per cent of the global youth population (UN, 20151)
 10 million youth enter Africa’s labour market annually.
 Youth is defined as people between the ages of 15 (exclusive) and 35 (inclusive).
 By 2020, three out of four Africans will be an average of 20 years old.
 Youth unemployment rate in sub-Saharan Africa is about 12%.
 Only 16% of youth have a ‘wage job’, while 62% work on family farms and 22% in household enterprises.
 At the US$2/day level, the working poverty rate was about 64 % in 2013 (YAP, 20162)
 The average age of farmers in Africa is about 55 years (WTO, 20153)
Why Agripreneurship?

Mission

Mission

To promote and stimulate youth driven entrepreneurship in agriculture and agribusiness within developing economies.

Aims

  • To encourage and support young adults to become the farmers of tomorrow through choice rather than necessity
  • To inspire young entrepreneurs to establish food-based businesses thus supporting the development of the wider rural community eco-system
  • To encourage new and novel approaches in locally based food systems that consider local opportunities and the challenges of climate change, conflict and malnutrition
  • To contribute to local and global food security

Objectives

  • Build a multi-sectoral partnership to support and engage in activities to fulfil mission
  • Design an online platform that will support in-person training programmes and individual young agripreneurs to acquire business skills specifically related to the early stages of business design and creation within agriculture and agribusiness
  • Develop an online course that can be embedded into in-person training programmes to enhance business skills acquisition specifically related to the early stages of business design and creation within agriculture and agribusiness
  • Establish a team of experienced volunteers who are available to mentor young agripreneurs
Mission

Growing agribusiness entrepreneurs in East Africa

Growing agribusiness entrepreneurs in East Africa
Crowdfunding Campaign on Global Giving

The Agripreneurship Alliance is running a crowdfunding campaign to change the lives of young African Agripreneurs. To get involved go here and please make a donation before it closes on 28 July 2019.

Summary
Unemployment is soaring in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet there are huge opportunities for new agribusinesses as food imports into Africa are already high and are expected to increase further. The Agripreneurship Alliance is training young people in East Africa in Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness to help them create their own businesses to generate income and employment. In particular, we encourage and support young women to become entrepreneurs.

Challenge
Africa already imports 35 billion USD of food every year and this is expected to increase to 100 billion USD by 2025. The opportunities for agriculture and agribusinesses are enormous. At the same time, Africa has the youngest population in world. Unemployment is skyrocketing with all the associated consequences that can lead to migration, extremism and substance abuse.

Solution
Vivian, David, Risper and Nelius are about to launch their Fresh Farms Mushroom business in Kibichoi, Kenya. They followed the Agripreneurship Alliance's training Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness which enabled them to fully analyse the business opportunities for mushroom farming in Kenya and step-by-step build a solid business plan. They are among the 87 students that participated in the training in 2018 in 5 locations in Kenya, Uganda and Somaliland in 2018.

Long-Term Impact
Of the 31 business plans that the teams of students produced, 16 businesses have already been launched or significantly strengthened, and more are in the pipeline once the students complete their studies. Will you help young people, like Vivian, grasp the opportunities to create their own businesses, generating income and employment? Will you help change lives?


Governance

Governance
The Agripreneurship Alliance is a membership based non-profit 'Association' established in Montreux and as such is subject to Swiss legal frameworks.  

The membership has a key function in the transparent operation of the association and oversees strategy and finance through General Assembly.  In addition the membership elects an Executive Assembly which implements the decisions of the General Assembly.  It conducts the Association and takes all necessary measures to ensure that the stated purpose of the Association is attained.  The Executive Committee for 2019:

President:  Dr Anne Roulin
Treasurer:  Valerie Hanbali
Secretary:  Charlotte Roulin
Member:    Makeba Magambo
Member:    Bora Kizil

The Agripreneurship Alliance is supported by an independent Advisory Panel that provides challenge and support to the Executive Committee and Chief Executive Office.  The Advisory Panel for 2019 includes:

Angelique Pitteloud
Jeremy McTeague
Maurice Maloney
Vytaute Tatter

Please contact us if you are interested in becoming a member of the Agripreneurship Alliance.

Key People

Professor Ruth Oniang'o

Patron

Dr. Ruth Oniang’o, winner of the 2017 African Food Prize, has kindly accepted our invitation to become Patron of the Agripreneurship Alliance.

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Anne Roulin

President

Across my career, I have worked in academia, in the private sector (Tetra Pak and Nestlé) and as an entrepreneur in the UK, Switzerland, the USA, Italy and France.

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Steven Carr

C.E.O

I am focused on improving the life chances of young adults with particular experience on those living in conflict and/or poverty within a Community Development framework.

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Makeba Magambo

In-Country Representative (Kenya)

I have a passion for young people and am keen to help them identify their talents in improving their own livelihoods and contributing to family, community and national development.

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Stuart Kennedy

Training Officer

I believe that young adults are powerful innovators & change agents. I work to empower young adults to enable them to challenge old ideas and practices so that they may change not only their own futures but also that of their families and the wider community.

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Innocent Chamisa

Social Media Officer

Early career international development expert, with a background in Agricultural Sciences, International Development, Natural Resource Management and Development Law, whose work has been centered on policy and promoting sustainable agriculture and rural development practices across the globe, encouraging active participation of youths and women.

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To be announced early 2019

Curriculum Resource Officer

To be announced early 2019

Fund Raising Officer

Online Course

Online Course Online Course Online Course
Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness
A free online course designed to help you develop your business idea and create a professional standard business plan.

This 10-week online course has been developed by the Agripreneurship Alliance in partnership with the African Management Initiative. The course will enable you to explore the challenges within your community and come up with sustainable business ideas to address them, creating wealth, employment and providing access to nutritious foods while considering the impact of climate change on society and the environment and how your agribusiness can thrive in this changing world.

By participating in this course you will:

•Develop your Unique Value Proposition
•Identify the Market for your product or service
•Establish the Financial Structure of your business
•Devise your Action Plan
•Create a professional standard Business Plan that will support the launch of your agribusiness
•Learn how to pitch and present your business
•Connect with Agripreneurs from around the globe

This course will start on Monday 28 October 2019.

Due to the amazing level of interest in this course, pre-registration is now closed.


Business Start Up Guides

Poultry (Broiler) Farming

  • 03/06/2019 11:05

Pig Farming

  • 03/06/2019 11:05

Fish Farming

  • 03/06/2019 11:05

Articles

An Exploration of Agripreneurship, Scope, Actors and Prospects. Steven Carr & Anne Roulin, June 2016

This research was commissioned as a result of growing interest in the topic of youth-centred Agripreneurship and had the objective to identify the key actors particularly within Academia, Non-Government Organisations and the non-profit sector to help young unemployed, or underemployed, graduates in Africa, or other developing economies, to enter into entrepreneurship in agriculture or agribusiness. The average age of farmers is increasing globally and encouraging a new generation of farmers and agribusinesses is crucial for the future of food and nutrition security. This is particularly critical in many developing countries where there are significant levels of migration of young people from rural to urban areas. Even where they stay in rural areas young people often do not have interest in agriculture as it is practiced today. This approach is also highly relevant within a wider global strategic framework that includes the Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 2063, Lesser Developed Countries and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

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Global Alliance for Agripreneurship. Steven Carr, February 2017

This paper recommends the establishment of a Global Alliance for Agripreneurship, as an independent organisation. This will bring together the skills and expertise of global partners to initially focus on the development of a website and allied online course that can be embedded through a blended learning approach into the Young Agripreneur Programme, ENABLE Youth and other programmes such as those at Universities and be accessible to independent young agripreneurs. Such an online presence will provide encouragement, ideas and resources that will support the African agricultural renaissance and work to promote and stimulate youth-driven entrepreneurship in agriculture and agribusiness within developing economies.

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Blog

23May

THE AGRIPRENEUR COACH: DIGITAL COACHING FOR AGRIBUSINESSES IN EASTERN AFRICA

  • 23/05/2019 21:30

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17Mar

Operationalizing the Sustainable Intensification Assessment Framework: An interview with Vara Prasad

  • 17/03/2019 15:06

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16Mar

Interview with Innocent Chamisa: Looking back, looking ahead …ICTs and Sustainable Crop Production Intensification...

  • 16/03/2019 15:02

Did you know Information communication and Technologies (#ICTs) have a great role to play in Agriculture?And that..."the really encouraging thing is that technology will only get better and cheaper in future, so its time everybody started trying it out ,even if only in a very limited way to start with…and it is worthy to keep in mind that, ICTs are a “means to an end” and “an end to a means” in sustainable crop production..." Read the interview below-Innocent Chamisa sharing on the role of ICT4Agric at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

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14Mar

How can modern food production systems create shared value for people, farm animals and nature?

  • 14/03/2019 14:58

Listen to @Wa_Mpiira young agripreneur Open Impact Institute, Uganda talking about modern food productions systems @ SLU in Alnarp

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12Mar

Young Entrepreneur Challenge Fund

  • 12/03/2019 14:54

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10Mar

Introduction to Sustainable Consumption and Production in Africa - Second Edition

  • 10/03/2019 14:46

To achieve sustainable development, national actors in Africa need to incorporate sustainable consumption and production (SCP) into national policies and planning. With the goal of scaling up learning on SCP in the region, UN Environment and UNITAR are partnering, under the SWITCH Africa Green Programme, to deliver the second edition of this interactive e-learning course, especially tailored to the regional context of Africa. Participants will learn what is SCP, what are the benefits from SCP to African countries, as well as what are some of the regional, national and sector-specific challenges and opportunities to implementing policies for SCP in the context of the 2030 Development Agenda. This e-learning course will equip participants with the basic skills for applying the SCP concept in a real world economic, policy and professional context. The course is offered both in English and French.

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09Mar

Are you a farmer? Here’s how you can access up to $1m loan

  • 09/03/2019 14:40

Are you a #farmer? With the #ABCFund, launched by IFAD during the #IFADgc, you can access up to $1m loan to grow your agribusiness. Discover more > > https://bit.ly/2GYEicH

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07Mar

AGRIBUSINESS AND INNOVATION PLATFORM (AIP) OF ICRISAT

  • 07/03/2019 14:24

#Highlight: ICRISAT's #Agribusiness & #Innovation Platform The #Agribusiness and Innovation Platform (AIP) is an initiative of ICRISAT to enhance its PPP models to promote technology transfer, collaborative research and agribusiness #entrepreneurship to help improve the livelihood of smallholder farmers, #women and #youth of the rural community. Find out more here: http://www.aipicrisat.org/

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07Mar

FAO Director-General stresses the need to create more jobs for youth and build capacity in rural areas to use digital technologies

  • 07/03/2019 14:19

Unleashing the great potential of #Africa's #youth to achieve sustainable development. "We need to take action to make #agriculture more attractive to #young people. They must perceive agriculture as a remunerative and profitable sector and the dissemination of information and communication technologies (#ICTs) in rural areas play an important role in this regard," Graziano da Silva DG at Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Read more here: http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/1149659/icode/ #YouthInag #AfricanYouth #agribusiness #ICT4Ag

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06Mar

One Planet Fellowship

  • 06/03/2019 14:08

Strong financing collaboration by the private sector, civil society, public research and private philanthropy is critical for mobilizing researchers and young people to work towards climate adaptation solutions, especially those targeted at African #smallholder #farmers. With support from the Gates Foundation, Fondation BNP Paribas, Agropolis Fondation and AWARD Fellowships, the One Planet Fellowship is a unique collaboration of the four sectors that brings gender to the centre of the climate science conversation. Read more here https://oneplanetfellowship.org/about-us

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28Feb

Introducing Lovin Kobusingye, founder of a fish processing business Kati Farms in Uganda

  • 28/02/2019 13:18

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28Feb

The African Union Commission 2nd Pan African Youth Forum.

  • 28/02/2019 13:15

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Resources from our Friends

Africa Management Initiative

The African Management Initiative (AMI) helps businesses across Africa build motivated, productive and effective workforces through our unique learning and transformation programmes, delivered via web, mobile and in-person workshops. We work with managers and entrepreneurs on building key business management skills, and have partnerships with numerous organisations on work-readiness programmes for young people entering the workforce

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Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation

Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation (CDI) is a part of the Wageningen University and Research Centre, based in the Netherlands. It is a world leading University in the topics of agriculture and forestry. CDI works on processes of innovation and change through facilitating innovation, brokering knowledge and supporting capacity development to build inclusive and sustainable food systems.

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Teach a Man to Fish

Teach A Man To Fish was founded in 2006 in London by Nik Kafka. Our mission is to change the world through transforming education in the developing countries. We work to empower young people in Africa, Latin America and Asia by providing them with a better quality and more relevant education so that they leave school prepared to succeed in work, in further education, and in life.

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École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

The École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) is one of the worlds leading Universities and hosts the 'MOOCs for Africa' Centre providing cloud-based learning on a range of topics and issues.

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Links to other Resources

World Agroforestry Centre

World Agroforestry Centre

The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) is a centre of scientific excellence possessing the world’s largest repository of agroforestry science and information. Our vision is an equitable world where all people have viable livelihoods supported by healthy and productive landscapes. The Centre generates science-based knowledge about the diverse roles that trees play in agricultural landscapes, and uses its research to advance policies and practices, and their implementation that benefit the poor and the environment.

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Beekeeping Manuals for Developing Countries

Beekeeping Manuals for Developing Countries

In collaboration with Pam Gregory, the UK National Bee Unit has produced a series of beekeeping manuals specifically designed to help beekeepers in developing countries. The manuals are aimed to help enhance apicultural practices by maximising productivity and potentially increase the income African Bee keepers receive.

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CTA: An ICT Agripreneurship Guide - A Path to Success for Young ACP Entrepreneurs

CTA: An ICT Agripreneurship Guide - A Path to Success for Young ACP Entrepreneurs

This Handbook provides a step-by-step roadmap designed to equip aspiring ICT entrepreneurs with the information and knowledge they need to start an ICT-based business in the agricultural sector, outlining key opportunities and challenges that will be encountered along the way.

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FAO: Toolkit and E-learning modules on Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Food Systems.

FAO: Toolkit and E-learning modules on Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture and Food Systems.

This integrated package of guidance materials, developed by drawing upon expertise from across the Organisation and of many partners, aims at enhancing capacities for the formulation, implementation and monitoring of nutrition-sensitive food system policies and programmes, in line with the Rome Declaration on Nutrition, the SDGs and UN Decade of Action for Nutrition.

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Contact

  • Montreux, Switzerland
  • PO Box 1028