Young rural entrepreneurs to showcase their products and services

Rome, 6 October 2011 – Young entrepreneurs from around the world will gather in Cotonou, Benin on 10 October to share knowledge and learn from each other’s experiences. The four-day event titled “Youth Entrepreneurs – Agents of Change” is being organised by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Phelps Stokes Fund in collaboration with the Government of Benin, Songhai Centre, Palmares Fundação cultural, Fundación Activos Culturales Afro (ACUA) and the GIVE 1 Project.

“This event is an exciting way to bring young people together so that we can define with them their objectives and strategies to improve the quality of their lives,” said Mohamed Béavogui, Director of IFAD’s West and Central Africa Division.

The fair will focus on agricultural businesses, innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership, and will bring together more than 100 young people from around the world to promote youth empowerment. More specifically, it will highlight youth-run enterprises that are located in, or providing products and services to rural areas. In addition, the fair will be the launching platform for the Global Youth Innovation Network (GYIN), a virtual space supported by IFAD that will be facilitated and managed entirely by young people.

Today’s generation of young people is the largest in history. In developing countries, young people ages 15 to 24 make up on average 20 per cent of the population. In some sub-Saharan African countries, more than 60 per cent of the population is under 25 years of age.

“Young people today are better educated and globalised as they are more connected to information from around the world that exposes them to new innovations,” Béavogui said. “This means we must crystalize this potential. IFAD’s role is to create the right conditions so that young people remain in their rural communities to lead a more successful life for themselves and their families.”

Youth unemployment is one of the key challenges faced by young people worldwide. It is estimated that 60 per cent of the total unemployed people in sub-Saharan Africa are between 15 and 24 years. Currently the youth population in West Africa is at about 350 million, which Béavogui said represents an enormous untapped potential for the region.

“Agriculture offers the single largest opportunity for job creation,” Béavogui added. “At the same time you have this large pool of dynamic young people, waiting and eager to find jobs to build better lives for themselves. It is only natural for IFAD to bring these together to ensure that tomorrow’s workforce will be able to feed tomorrow’s world.”

To find more about this fair, please visit GYIN website

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Press release No.: IFAD/68/2011

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) works with poor rural people to enable them to grow and sell more food, increase their incomes and determine the direction of their own lives. Since 1978, IFAD has invested about US$13.2 billion in grants and low-interest loans to developing countries through projects empowering about 400 million people to break out of poverty, thereby helping to create vibrant rural communities. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized UN agency based in Rome – the United Nation’s food and agricultural hub. It is a unique partnership of 167 members from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), other developing countries and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)