Posted on May, 22, 2025 at 11:44 pm
A leading hunger eradication lobby has called on governments, development partners, and investors to support Africa’s youth in a bid to transform the continent’s agricultural sector.
Speaking at the Financing Agri-Food Systems Sustainably (FINAS) Summit 2025 in Nairobi, Heifer International Interim Country Director Clarice Bugo-Kionge highlighted the crucial role of young innovators using technology to reimagine farming on the continent.
Bugo-Kionge emphasized that the future of Africa’s food systems hinges on empowering young people with the tools, financing, and platforms they need to scale agritech solutions.
“These are not distant dreams. These are scalable, profitable, and profoundly impact-driven innovations already transforming lives,” she told a gathering at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) on Thursday.
“The young innovators in this room today embody hope, determination, and the audacity to solve problems that have persisted for generations,” Bugo-Kionge stated.
Heifer, with a commitment to reach 625,000 households in Kenya with sustainable agricultural solutions by 2030, cited mounting concerns over Africa’s food security, with a population expected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050 and agricultural systems already under severe pressure from climate change.
While agriculture employs over 60 percent of Africa’s workforce, a Heifer International report revealed that only 23 percent of youth engaged in the sector currently use any form of agricultural technology.
“Business as usual is simply not an option,” Bugo-Kionge warned.
“We need bold innovation. Within this challenge lies striking opportunity — a fertile ground for true transformation.”
The report, titled The Future of Africa’s Agriculture: An Assessment of the Role of Youth and Technology, surveyed nearly 30,000 young people across 11 African countries. It highlighted that the lack of access to financing and digital training is a major barrier preventing youth from adopting and scaling agricultural innovations.
Speaking at the summit, Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi echoed Heifer’s call, urging a radical shift in the structuring and deployment of agricultural finance.
“This [is] the shift we [are] called to make — from transactional to transformational financing,” Mudavadi stated. “One that does not just react to crisis but anticipates opportunity.”
He emphasized the importance of context-sensitive financing that seeks to empower, not extract, and called for solutions that reflect the realities of Africa’s diverse agricultural landscape — from pastoralists in Marsabit, to women fish traders along Lake Victoria, to youth-led agritech startups in Kigali.
“Are we financing to empower or to extract? Are our financial instruments built to absorb risk, build resilience, and create value — particularly for those at the margins?” he posed to the summit.
Mudavadi warned that smallholder farmers — who produce over 75 per cent of Kenya’s agricultural output — remain trapped in low-productivity cycles due to fragmented value chains, poor market access, high input costs, and limited access to credit.
He called for smarter, blended finance instruments and innovations such as climate bonds, diaspora bonds, and Islamic finance to meet the needs of rural and underserved communities.
“Financing Africa’s food system is not a matter of charity. It is an investment in resilience, security, and the future of a continent poised for greatness,” he declared.
In her presentation, Bugo-Kionge singled out Heifer International’s flagship program, the AYuTe Africa Challenge (Agriculture, Youth, and Technology), as a significant step toward narrowing the technology gap.
Since its 2022 launch, AYuTe Kenya has coached more than 230 youth-led startups, awarded over $40,000 in seed grants, and fostered innovative solutions across the agricultural value chain.
“Through programs like AYuTe, we’re not just investing in ideas — we’re investing in a generation,” said Bugo-Kionge.
One such success story is DigiCow, a tech startup that digitizes farm-gate produce collection and offers dairy farmers mobile access to veterinary services and training.
Founded by Peninah Wanja, DigiCow represents the type of transformative enterprise Heifer aims to promote.
Despite promising initiatives like DigiCow, Bugo-Kionge decried the fact that agritech receives less than one percent of global venture capital investment, calling it “economically irrational and a profound missed opportunity for the continent.”
“Investing in youth-led agritech solutions is not charity; it is smart business,” she stated.
“It is the most direct pathway to food security, climate resilience, and the inclusive economic growth our continent desperately needs.”
She urged innovators to sustain the momentum toward tech-powered agriculture, noting that it is key to overcoming food insecurity, youth unemployment, and the growing threat of climate change.
“To our young innovators: Continue to dream boldly, build relentlessly, and never underestimate your power to transform not just agriculture, but the very fabric of our societies,” Bugo-Kionge said.
“The question is not whether we can afford to invest in youth-led agritech innovation. The question is whether we can afford not to.”
Source: Capital FM