Young Professionals for Agricultural Development, YPARD, together with Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is now set to develop a new strategic plan that focuses on the development of human capital particularly – the youth.  It aims to design an efficient mechanism of intervention to solve some common challenges within the agricultural sector in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).... More

In this year, a total of 352 youth representatives from 69 countries gathered in Beijing to attend and contribute to the 4th Asian-African Youth Festival 2019, Beijing, China from 15 to 19 October 2019.  Youth representatives came from all alley of life, including politics, economic, sports, education, media, academia, and social organizations. There were 199 representatives from 34 Asian Countries. The... More

YPARD is currently collaborating with FAO to design and plan the best approach in tackling the agricultural sector challenges in the non-conflictual zones in the RNE (North Africa and Near East region).  Looking at the climate and natural resources available in those countries, we note that there are many challenges to overcome.  We could cite countries like Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait,... More

I am Shah Khalid, a Ph.D. scholar in Agronomy at the University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan.  I am very glad to share my story on my journey with YPARD Pakistan. Last month, I have received a call from Prof. Dr. Muhammad Arif, who told me about Ms. Shahla Salahuddin, YPARD Pakistan Country Representative. Ms. Salahuddin introduced a conference co-organized by YPARD... More

YPARD is currently working with FAO in order to design and plan the best approach to tackle the major challenges within the agricultural sector in RNE (North Africa and Near East region), especially as regards the youth.  Priorities are to be set concerning the countries, which are mainly affected by these challenges such as Syria, Yemen, Sudan and Iraq. A baseline understanding... More

Farmers in rural areas are associated with inadequate technical knowledge on good agricultural production and post-harvest techniques that lead a cycle of poverty. In addition to these, they lack access to sufficient veterinary services for their livestock. This results in economic losses due to disease and pest infestations. To bridge the knowledge gap in these rural areas and strengthen rural knowledge... More

We are delighted to welcome the YPARD project support intern Wendel Georges.  Wendel is originally from Haiti but have had the privilege to live his past six years in Costa Rica, where he gained first his bachelor degree in Agriculture and Natural Resource Management at Escuela de Agricultura de la Región Tropical Húmeda (EARTH), and just recently he graduated with a... More

We are delighted to welcome the YPARD project support intern Gabriel Yves Badr. Gabriel is an Agricultural Engineering student with a Minor in Politics. He is currently rounding up his final year project entitled “Agriculture, Syria’s economic hope” in order to obtain his diploma of Agricultural Engineering along with a minor in Middle Eastern Studies from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik.... More

Agroecology is a scientific discipline that involves a set of practices and a social movement.  Indeed, it seeks sustainable farming systems to optimize and stabilize yield and tackles a multifunctional role for agriculture, promotes social justice and culture and strengthens the economic viability of rural areas. The new project involving youth in agroecology will be implemented through the collaboration between UNFAO... More

It was a great opportunity participating and representing YPARD at the symposium of “the future of youth’s political participation” in Strasbourg France, organized by the European Union and the Council of Europe.  Introductions and conversations were held including all participants along with the questions and answers sessions describing the actual state of youth in politics and the improvements that should be further tackled to... More

Assam is one of the states of India which is located in the northeast region. It is a tea grown area.  Assam tea industry is at the peak of crises and on the verge of economic distress.   Presently, Assam Tea is not economically profitable as it used to be earlier on account of rising production costs and stagnant prices of the... More

The sustainable development goals (SDGs) are global index to measure national development in areas such as economic growth, environmental issues, human capital development, food security and health, and many more. The Goal Keepers initiative is one of the index established by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation established to track progress on SDGs and support implementation through policies and activities directed... More

Apres l’Afrique de l’est, les jeunes professionnels pour le développement agricole (YPARD) en collaboration avec l'Organisation des Nations Unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture (FAO) ainsi que Rikolto (anciennement VECO West Africa) programment un autre  atelier de formation du 21 au 25 Octobre 2019 à Dakar/Sénégal. Cet atelier concerne les jeunes des pays d’Afrique de l’ouest, entre autres le Benin, le Sénégal,... More

During my visit to Armenia, I met with Anna, YPARD representative for Armenia at her lovely venture, located some 40 km from Yerevan. Anna leads a socially responsible enterprise that produces dried fruits. She works closely with about 300 families in a region, from whom she buys raw material. Annas’ business has created 30 workplaces for villagers, especially women, while their husbands... More

This was the motto of the International Seminar for leaders of rural youth work in "Herrsching am ammersee" in Bavaria, Munich-Germany 2019. Almost 80 young professionals from almost 50 countries around the world attended this seminar, where they shared with each other their knowledge and experiences. At the same time, they worked together to gain Leadership knowledge and skills. They also... More

For the past few years, YPARD and its partner organizations have conducted a series of activities to support young people in agriculture. Our mission is to enable and empower young agricultural leaders shaping sustainable food systems. To achieve this we have our members at heart, who are encouraged to become active voices for the youth in their respective fields and organizations... More

Out of my desire to acquire new knowledge and skills, and my quest to understand the nitty-gritty of integrated farming systems, I and my colleagues recently embarked on a week-long sojourn to Songhai Integrated Production and Training CentreThis is a farm nestled in a 22-hectare parcel of land in the Ouando neighbourhood of Porto Novo, the Republic of Benin. Established in... More

We are delighted to welcome the incoming YPARD Azerbaijan communications focal point Ramil Azmammadov.  Ramil studied a BA in Agriculture Management and MA in Management of Production Systems at Azerbaijan State Agriculture University. While he studied MA in Management of Production Systems, he received a scholarship from the Hungarian Republic and FAO to study a second master's degree in Hungary. In... More

The Ghana Association of Agricultural Economists (GAAE) held its third annual conference at the ISSER Conference Facility- University of Ghana, Legon from July 23-26, 2019. The conference theme was “Sustainable agriculture and national development: Finance, Markets and Job creation”. The three-day conference brought together academia, researchers, industry partners and young entrepreneurs interested in developing careers in agribusiness. Apart from plenary discussion... More

Social media has grown tremendously in the last few years and it has enabled the spreading of information to a wider public. Now a powerful tool connects communities regardless of the location. The Young Engagement in Agriculture Network (YEAN) and Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD) have together accumulated experience in managing and coordinating different social media reporting projects for several... More