6 WAYS TO A RIGHT START IN AGRIBUSINESS IN 2013.

As we step into the year 2013, a lot of indications at the last quarter cum earlier activity of 2012 shows that serious attention would be drawn to agriculture, with a business unusual dimension for the sector. What this means is that agriculture would no longer be seen as mere farming- a laborious venture with lot of waiting period for benefits to be gotten but rather as a business, a source of employment for the youths, a source of livelihood and most importantly (especially to me) a sector that young people would begin to find desirous and attractive and lucrative.

To succeed as young people- agric entrepreneurs, it is important that we are armed with not only the relevant information, right and appropriate skills to thrive but have a strong desire and see the attractive but BIG picture in Agriculture, Food Supply Chain, Food Safety etc. Here are a few tips i have decided to share with all the young people out there that desire to go into any part of Agriculture cum Agribusiness or that are already into it.

     i.        Be Business Plan Ready: Funding and grant competitions and opportunities would open up in 2013. One of the basic requirements is that you MUST have a business plan. It is important that you have one ready at all times. Like my friend Allavi Elorm of Syecomp Business Services in Ghana said “Make sure your business plan is handy and accessible in both soft and hard copies”. You just have to be ready when the opportunity comes knocking at the door. Be it a competition or the opportunity to pitch your plan before potential clients or investors.

 

    ii.        Leverage on the Skills and Knowledge (of your friends and associates): Involve trusted friends (vision or dream builders) in our endeavour. The world we live in is blessed with very blessed individuals and this offers us a win-win environment. Be willing to ask for help from friends who would be ready to do some tasks for you at no cost or a cheaper one. Let us take this as a typical example, do you need to do graphic design works for branding of your agro firm why not talk to a friend who has got expertise in graphic design. Often times, such ones are willing to do it for free or at a comfortable discount. BUT never take the help or discount for granted.

 

   iii.        Network and Join the right support Organisations: Trust me, been part of he right networks and organisations either online or offline makes it possible to gain access to information and resources needed. A few examples are Young Professionals’ platform for Agricultural Research for Development(YPARD), Harambe Nigeria, Global Youth Innovation Network (GYIN), National Association of Small Scale Industrialist (NASSI) to mention a few. Like the pages and join groups on social networks that relates to agriculture. All these organisations or networks have products, resources, seminars, workshops and other opportunity openings that young agro entrepreneurs need from time to time.

   iv.        Do not Joke with Farmers’ Organisation: Interestingly, government, research institutions, organisation, banks etc. both local and international desire always to align with groups of farmers rather than individuals. So ensure that you are part of a farmers’ organisation or cooperative at the very least. In Nigeria for example, the government recognises the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) and they are found in every state of the federation. So make out time and join one. What more, interacting with fellow farmers and agro allied service providers helps in understanding the terrain and create synergy to tackle common problems and challenges.

 

    v.        Be Information Hungry: it is often said that “knowledge is Power”. As young people (with a so much passion, desire that finds Agriculture attractive), we need to be HUNGRY for relevant and credible information and resources. Sometimes this information opens up tips, opportunities and a large array of doors and networks that would be helpful. This brings me to the Power of the Social Media Networks. Merely following the research bodies like CGIAR, FARA, CIMMIT on twitter connects you to lot of information that would be invaluable.

 

   vi.        Engage in Personal Development and Training: Everyday new findings and results are revealed or unravelled through researches. More knowledge is provided about value chains and investment opportunities for entrepreneurs in the sector. As young entrepreneurs it is important that you get the right trainings through workshops, conferences and specialised training classes. Sometimes you have to pay for them. It could be a new method of cropping or livestock management or even soft skills and business management training. All these makes us fit for the sector and ready to excel.

 

Join the revolution of Young Agroprenuers, our Nation waits on us to turn things around. This is real business. Follow these tips and some more you may have gathered on your own and be sure of success. See you all at the top.

THE COOL TO FARM WORKSHOP AKURE,NIGERIA

“Agribusiness, cool business”, these were the words on the lips of the 39 young people who attended the “Cool to Farm” Workshop series in the city of Akure, Ondo State on the 21^st of November 2012.

The “Cool to Farm” workshop was put together by two youth driven organizations the OAC-Agro Advocacy Initiative and Agropreneur Nigeria. The workshop had the theme “it’s Cool to Farm- Exploring the opportunities in Agriculture and Agribusiness for young Nigerian”.

The workshop kicked off with the Olusola Amusan of the OAC- Agro Advocacy Intiative showing to those present the challenges before them as it relates to food wastage, unemployment and increasing population while Olawale Ojo of Agropreneur Nigeria went on a journey of showing to the youth what the agricultural value chain entails and how they can find their place by developing skills to fit in any of the links of the value chain.

The panel session featured stakeholders from key areas of the agricultural sector such as the All Farmers Association, The World Cocoa Foundation and a seasoned UNDP Consultant on poverty alleviation with over 25 years experience. These facilitators not only showed the audience that agriculture and agribusiness were the way out but also provided practical steps and suggestions to help them get more involved in the sector. All the relevant areas of the sector was touched such as research, extension, ICT,  farmers organizations and the need for partnership among players in the sector.

Mr Idowu Oludare of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria Ondo state chapter proclaimed that the youth were really needed and encouraged to pick up an area of interest and grow passion for agriculture.

Input supply, on- farm production, post harvest handling, export trade , research and development delivery and extension work were some of the opportunities in the cocoa production sector in Nigeria that Mr  Tope Fatunbi opened up to the youth who were surprised that there were a lot more they could do out side having to go to the farm to get dirty as it were.

The women were not left out as Awoyinka Tosin CEO, Afrinutriti a producer of ginger syrup and juice showed to the ladies that they had a very important role to play especially in the area of agro processing of food materials and she emphasis that they do not want to just be laborers on the farm but also producers and job creators.

Breakout sessions that followed had the youths go into two groups to discuss challenges related to factors that hinder the development of youths in agriculture namely, Training, funding, capacity building and the use of ICT in agriculture and agribusiness. The result of the breakout sessions were then discussed extensively to proffer sustainable solutions.

In the words of Mr Isaac Oluwalade of the Cocoa Livelihood Program which is a project between the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the World Cocoa Foundation “we are happy that the youths are beginning to show interest in the sector and we would continue to work with the organizers of this workshop to reach more youth with the message”

The future of Nigeria and indeed Africa is in agriculture and it is only when the youths take their place in the streams of event that real change can come. The “cool to farm” workshop series has taken upon itself the responsibility of advocating for more youth involvement in agriculture and agribusiness and would be moving from city to city spreading the message in the months to come.

The GCARD2 social media team receives certificate from Uruguay's Minister of Agriculture

 

After 2 days of intensive training on social media and social reporting, the GCARD2 Social Media Team received their Certificate from H.E. Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries, Tabaré Aguerre

The opening ceremony of the second Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development (GCARD2) took place on 28th October 2012 at the Conrad Hotel in Punta del Este, Uruguay.

Over 700 participants from around the world were present and came to discuss and share experiences on the 3 themes of the conference: Foresight, Partnerships and capacity building. The main issue to be addressed here is how to innovate and have high quality research so that the results help improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers?

Present at the opening ceremony of the conference were the GFAR Chair, Monty Jones, CGIAR Consortium Board Chair, Mr. Carlos Perez del Castillo, the President of IFAD, Kanayo Nwanze, and H.E Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries, Mr. Tabaré Aguerre.

In his speech, Mr. Monty Jones introduced the 3 themes of the conference and highlighted that Uruguay is a good location for the GCARD2, since they have many best practice case studies to learn from when it comes to agriculture and involving smallholder farmers for agricultural development.

The CGIAR Consortium Board Chair, Mr. C.P.del Castillo shared with the audience the importance of research for agricultural development and gave examples from the work being done by CGIAR. According to him, climate change will have a significant impact on Agriculture and the CGIAR has undergone reform to adapt to the situation. The research being carried out by the CGIAR centres is being done collectively on a wide range of topics.

The speech of the chair of IFAD, Mr. Kanayo Nwanze, was very focused on the conference themes. He highlighted that 2 years ago, Agricultural development was not acknowledged at national, regional and international level, but today it is not the case anymore. Agriculture is the concern of every one of us. The President of IFAD said that today we have the interest, commitment and funding, but how do we seize the opportunity?

Climate change is is here and going to affect us, and the President of IFAD said that future research to be carried out should be focused on climate smart agriculture. To do so, there should be partnerships among different stakeholders. Mr. Nwanze believes that f we want a change, we need to work with the farmers in the field and it is there that the impact of research will be seen. And he ended his speech with a very interesting statement: "The day when no child dies from hunger and malnutrition, we will know our work has been done"!

The Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries, Mr. Tabaré Aguerre gave an overview of Agriculture in Uruguay. He said that Uruguay is a net exporting country, while many countries in the world are net importers. But we have the same environment, challenges and opportunities. How has Uruguay been able to achieve success in its Agricultural sector?

In fact, the Uruguayan Agricultural strategy is based on competitiveness, social integration and natural resources policies, and we have a lot to learn from the country.

For the youth of the Social Media Team, it was a great privilege to receive their certificate for social media and social reporting from the hands of the Minister. As some said, it was a magical moment that will be engraved in our memories!

And talking about rewards and recognition to attract youth to agriculture, this is a concrete example of how young agriculture professionals from all over the world got the opportunity to cover the conference events and interact with the agriculture professionals present in Uruguay!

 

Blogpost by Nawsheen Hosenally, one of the GCARD2 Social Reporters.

Photo: Bernardo Thompson

Original Blog Post on this Link: The GCARD2 social media team receives certificate from Uruguay's Minister of Agriculture