From farm to fork, the global health crisis triggered by Covid-19 is a serious threat to our food systems. Notwithstanding, new opportunities are emerging for young people to participate more actively in agricultural value chains. For the “youngest” continent, projected to have 50% of the population aged under 25 years by 2050, seizing this opportunity is key to ensuring that its young... Continue reading

Education is the key to a successful society; If you educate a woman, you have an educated society. Imagine a planet where farmers, particularly the rural African women, learn, know how to and produce highly nutritious food. This would considerably bring positive impacts on health, nutrition and additionally increase farmer’s income. Women play a significant role in society, in food security;... Continue reading

We are delighted to welcome the new YPARD Trinidad and Tobago country representative, Enricka Julien. Enricka is a graduate with a Bachelor's degree in Agribusiness, with minors in Gender and Development Studies, Communication and Extension from University of the West Indies (UWI), St. Augustine Campus in Trinidad.  Enricka is an agricultural professional with over six years of experience working across various... Continue reading

We are delighted to welcome the incoming YPARD Belgium communications focal point: Ángela Patricia Guerrero Castillo.  Ángela is a graduate with a Master’s degree in Electronic Engineering from Escuela Colombiana de Ingeniería Julio Garavito and a Bachelor in Mechatronic Engineering from Universidad de San Buenaventura in Bogotá, Colombia. Currently, Ángela is a Ph.D. student in Precision Agriculture at Ghent University in Ghent,... Continue reading

The COVID-19 Pandemic continues to wreak havoc all over the world forcing governments to impose restrictions and quarantine to contain the spread to "flatten the curve". And these measures have consequently crippled economies and supply chains worldwide. Producers are now vulnerable to economic shocks, volatile commodity prices and high labour costs that threaten to destroy their livelihood. In Kenya, smallholder farmers are facing... Continue reading

On 21st of May 2020, YPARD Philippines hosted an E-Forum with the same title promoted on social media with the hashtag - #YouthInAgPostCOVID. This was organized in partnership with Dream Agritech Consultancy Services, and co-presented by YPARD Global and WhyFarm. The YPARD Steering Committee Chair, Marina Cherbonnier and the YPARD Director, Yemi Adeyeye alongside Alpha Sennon of WhyFarm served as guest... Continue reading

Agriculture is the backbone of the Nepals’ economy.  About 60.4% of the total population of Nepal is dependent on agriculture contributing to 31.7% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). However, the agricultural sector is affected by various factors of low productivity, climate change, and lack of inputs and mechanization.  In the current situational crisis of worldwide lockdown due to COVID-19, Nepal government... Continue reading

Young people have the energy, enthusiasm, and perspective to work and achieve something good and sustainable in the field of rural development. In general in developing countries, rural youth after completing their education do not return to their homes to make an effective contribution to the development of rural areas, and communities where they live, but in most cases, they migrate... Continue reading

COVID-19 (Coronavirus) the global pandemic which officially started last year in China Wuhan, although they have been a lot of scandals regarding the pandemics and its origin, that is not the focus of this write-up. According to WHO ‘’ Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses which may cause illness in animals or humans.  In humans, several coronaviruses are known to... Continue reading

We are delighted to welcome the new YPARD Peru country representative, Marcelita Ponce de León. Marcelita is a graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Agronomic Engineering from the National Agrarian University La Molina. She began her professional career as an intern in government programs. This allowed her to have contact with different rural communities from cultures that promoted ancestral knowledge for the... Continue reading

Although they have been working towards sustainability before it was trending, waste pickers remain some of the most widely excluded people on the planet.  The result of decades of marginalising by societies is revealed very plainly during this global pandemic. But before talking about COVID-19, let’s talk about them. Who are waste pickers? Waste pickers are informal workers who base their... Continue reading

What are the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on the world’s food system? This question sets the backdrop of a recent chat with EdenWorld (EW) and Dr. Yemi Adeyeye, the YPARD Director, on the theme – roles of young professionals in achieving sustainable agri-food system in a Post COVID-19 world. EW: What makes an agri-food system sustainable?  Yemi: In simple terms,... Continue reading

Despite being one of the biggest food producers in the world, Brazil is a country with major social inequalities, political instability and a large food-insecure population. Within this context, many are the challenges and complex issues posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In terms of food chains and urban agriculture, as we know, “the bigger the food chain the bigger the risk”,... Continue reading

We are delighted to welcome the new YPARD France communications focal point:  Isaline Réguer Isaline is pursuing a Master’s degree in Agronomy in Bordeaux Sciences Agro, in France. She is specializing in Territorial Economy and Agricultural Development. Her goal is to work with a holistic approach to enhance and strengthen agricultural practices and policies better for the environment and for human well-being.... Continue reading

According to FAO, the number of young people (aged 15 to 24) is expected to increase to 1.3 billion by 2050, accounting for almost 14% of the projected global population. As we all know, the world is now getting more advanced in terms of modernization, use of technology, new practices and much more. Agriculture is going into dim light as most... Continue reading

The GWP Steering Committee, at its meeting in December 2019, decided to create a permanent independent youth seat on the Committee, thereby ensuring full information and voting rights for a strong youth perspective. This step is unique among global water organisations and reflects the GWP’s commitment to creating space and opportunities for youth to engage in water governance and management -... Continue reading

The government of Nepal initiated nationwide lockdown from March 24 as the preventive measure during the Corona Virus Outbreak.  The duration of lockdown is uncertain as it was initially for 21 days but it’s hampering day to day activities like study, work and others. For students, it might be frustrating because the research works are directly affected but still, the lockdown... Continue reading

YPARD is delighted to welcome Ingrid Oliveira as the new Communications Coordinator.  Ingrid is a graduate with a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Transformation from the University of Basel, in Switzerland, and a bachelor’s in law from Universidade Federal de Sergipe, in her native country of Brazil.  Ingrid has been working as a Communication Officer for GFRAS – Global Forum... Continue reading

How are the local agricultural sector and rural advisory services coping with COVID-19? GFRAS has recently conducted a survey on what kind of COVID-19 information our constituency would like us to provide. The absolute top interest lied on understanding the impact of COVID-19 on food value chains, and possible mitigation strategies. We have also seen more than 1,000 unique hits on... Continue reading

“I will breathe no matter what; the question is whether the human will breathe or not. I leave this decision up to you” – the message to Humanity from Mother Earth, commonly known as COVID-19. Thus, what will be our choice? That was one of the questions we discussed during our small group meetings as part of the “Game Changer Course”... Continue reading