Call for Essays from Youth: Engagement for impact in agricultural development

As 2018 draws to a close and the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) is developing its strategic plan covering the next ten years, the organization seeks to gain insights into the engagement of youth in agriculture on the continent by various agricultural institutions, members of the Forum.

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In this vein, the Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD)- Africa in collaboration with FARA is launching an essay competition to have youth articulate their experiences in youth engagement initiatives across the region, especially in the context of agri-preneurship. This is aimed at informing FARA and its constituents better on how to effectively engage with and feature youth and women in agriculture in the context of implementing FARA’s new strategy.

The essay should reflect the experience you went through as a beneficiary of an initiative involving an agricultural institution in your country or region. However, in case you were directly involved in the implementation of such an initiative, directed towards youth, and you are able to share the experience of engaging other youth, YPARD Africa may also consider your perspective as an ‘engaging youth’.

A selection of the authors of the essays of the competition will be contacted by a team of consultants to obtain further details of their documented experiences. A further selection will have a fully sponsored opportunity to participate in a three-day youth workshop/writeshop at the FARA Secretariat in Accra to share their experiences with FARA, its constituents and other youth participants. The workshop/writeshop will be scheduled in the first quarter of 2019. The dates will duly be announced.

Essay guide

Your entry must address the following:

• Your contact details: Full name; email; WhatsApp Number; SkypeID
• In what way has the initiative changed your outlook as a professional in agriculture?
  • insight
  • opportunities
  • income levels
  • networking
• What kind of support did this intervention offer? (Describe the initiative clearly so we can attribute credit to the programme/institution)
• What features of the initiative inspired/ empowered you most?
• What are the challenges that this initiative helped you overcome?
• Are there any challenges you still encounter?
• In what ways do you envision these challenges could be dealt with?
• In what way can sharing your experience be useful to other youth?
• Your essay can range between 500-1000 words long. The essay can be submitted in English or French.

To ensure that your entry can be shared within the YPARD network, please first register as a member at YPARD’s website. Send your entry to ypard@africa.net and kbheenick@faraafrica.org by Sunday, 16th December 2018