A Facilitation Approach to Youth Workforce Development and Entrepreneurship

The Feed the Future Uganda Youth Leadership for Agriculture Activity facilitated linkages by influencing the youth employment and workforce development ecosystem. The activity identified private sector actors looking to hire youth and determined the skills gap between private sector demand and youth ability. The facilitation approach to youth workforce development built the right relationships among…

Empowering Youth to Succeed in Market-Driven Agriculture

In Nigeria, the Maximizing Agricultural Revenue and Key Enterprises in Targeted Sites (MARKETS II) project addressed constraints in the agricultural value chain to improve rural farmers’ performance, income, and food security. To change how young Nigerians view and engage in the sector, MARKETS II promoted agriculture as “agribusiness,” engaging youth not just in farming, but…

3 Questions with Bassey Archibong: Inclusive Development in Nigeria

USAID’s Maximizing Agricultural Revenue and Key Enterprise in Targeted Sites (MARKETS II) project in Nigeria aims to improve the performance, income, nutrition, and food security of poor Nigerian rural farmers or smallholders in an environmentally friendly manner. Why is social inclusion important for the development of Nigeria? In Nigeria, 68 percent of the population lives…

Maximizing Business Value from Sustainability Investments Table

The Maximizing Agricultural Revenue and Key Enterprises in Targeted Sites (MARKETS II) project trained master trainers and individuals from national and international organizations, including their beneficiaries. The project also targeted agricultural value chain segments that are more favorable for the involvement of woman and youth, such as service providers, processing, and micro-enterprises. The value of…

MARKETS II Mid-Term Update (2015)

The Maximizing Agricultural Revenue and Key Enterprises in Targeted Sites (MARKETS II) was USAID/Nigeria’s flagship project under Feed the Future (FTF). It aimed to sustainably improve the performance, income, nutrition, and food security of poor Nigerian rural farmers or smallholders in an environmentally friendly manner. Key objectives included smallholder farmer access to increased income, ready…

Celebrating Nigeria’s Food and Agriculture Markets

This post was originally published by the Global Harvest Initiative, and is cross-posted with permission. Nigeria has a powerful potential for productive agriculture with linkages to growing consumer demand. Living in Abuja and working in the field of agriculture, I witness this potential of agriculture to help improve the lives of farmers, not only in…

Chasing the $42-Per-Farmer Dream: How Youth Are Making Money With ICT in Agriculture

Uganda has the world’s youngest population with over 78 percent of its population below the age of 30. Though the country also has one of the highest youth unemployment rates in Sub-Saharan Africa, many of Uganda’s young adults have limited interest in pursuing careers in agriculture because they see it as a subsistence livelihood, or…

Final Report: Nepal Economic, Agriculture, and Trade Activity

USAID’s Nepal Economic, Agriculture, and Trade (NEAT) Activity aimed to build capacities within Nepal’s number one industry — agriculture — to reduce poverty and food insecurity, facilitate important regulatory and ad- ministrative reforms to increase revenue generation and trade, improve access to finance, and attract investment. The project also aimed to address deficiencies in the…

Final Report: El Salvador Productive Development Project

The Productive Development Project (PDP) was created to help reduce poverty through economic growth in the Northern Zone of El Salvador. To spur economic activity that would boost incomes and demand for labor through productive initiatives and services tailored to rural settings, the PDP team identified three core areas for its work: technical assistance and…