By James Mutua
Young agripreneurs, policymakers, and development partners met in Kigali for a youth-led dialogue on Africa’s food systems, highlighting the sector’s potential to create jobs, drive enterprise growth, and foster innovation among young people.
The discussion, themed “Who Gets to Shape Africa’s Food Future?”, brought together entrepreneurs and policymakers to examine both opportunities and barriers in the agri-food sector. Despite agriculture employing a large share of the population, many young people still view it as a last resort due to limited access to finance, markets, land, and support services.
Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Dr. Telesphore Ndabamenye, urged youth to see agriculture as a pathway to wealth creation, food security, and employment. He emphasized the need to prioritize food production as the foundation for economic gains.
“You cannot market what you do not have,” he said. “We must first secure food. From food comes cash, and from cash come jobs.” He also called on young people to take a more active role in transforming the sector.
Speakers at the event stressed the importance of amplifying youth voices and better understanding the challenges they face in agribusiness. They noted that empowering young people as innovators and entrepreneurs is key to building stronger and more resilient food systems.
AGRA, through its youth-focused programmes, continues to support agribusiness development by expanding access to skills, markets, and financing, while working with policymakers to create an enabling environment. In Rwanda, these efforts have already led to thousands of job opportunities for young people.
Participants also highlighted the value of platforms that connect youth with policymakers and investors, noting that such engagements help build confidence, share ideas, and unlock new opportunities.
The dialogue comes as Africa intensifies efforts to strengthen its food systems, with growing focus on job creation and inclusive agricultural transformation.
