BEIGE Foundation partners Africa Lead, USAID to support youth in agribusiness

BEIGE Foundation has partnered with Africa Lead and USAID to deliver Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Development Course to youth leaders in Ghana.

The objective is to develop the capacity of entrepreneurs in agribusiness identification, planning and management in order to strengthen start-ups and expand existing entrepreneurs.

The goal of the Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Development Course is to close the unemployment gap and address employment demands of youth and women in the agriculture and agribusiness sectors.

The CEO of BEIGE Group, Mike Nyinaku addressing the media at the Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship Boot Camp on Monday, October 2 at the Oak Plaza Hotel in Accra said the agreement between USAID and Africa Lead is to develop, support and sponsor young farmers in the agricultural and agribusiness sector so they thrive in their businesses, thereby making the sector look lucrative for others to take agriculture seriously because that is the aim of his foundation to help those in need.

He, therefore, encouraged young farmers to take advantage of the 5-day short course programme by applying what they learn from it the best way they can to support their businesses.

The West Africa Regional Director for Africa Lead, Carla Denizard said the main objective for collaborating with BEIGE Foundation is to develop individual capacity and strengthen organizational capacity by promoting entrepreneurship, business excellence and youth development.

She indicated that most youths in Ghana are not interested in agriculture because they think it’s a poor man’s business but it actually comes with lots of opportunities.

She stated that Africa has lots of natural resources that could feed the world so if we utilize these resources, then Africa specifically Ghana can do import substitution by producing and growing then the country can save a lot of foreign exchange that can be used for other development initiatives.



Also, Jenna Tajchman-Trofim who is the Deputy Director of Economic Growth at USAID urged the youth of Ghana to get interested and engage in agriculture for the sector to be successful.

“We need young minds to contribute to the development and deployment of innovative technologies, we need people like you to modernize the sector in ways our parents and grandparents never imagined and we need you to help us feed the world”, she said.

The 5-day agribusiness and entrepreneurship short course comprising sixteen sessions will inspire, energize and mobilize youth leaders, champions and thinkers who are committed to creative new approaches to achieving food security in Africa. It is expected that participants will be able to do the following after attending the course.



1. Identify the challenges and opportunities in various agriculture value chains.

2. Develop their business ideas.

3. Explain how to manage cash flow.

4. Create financial statements

5. Write an Executive Summary of a business plan.

6. Describe the various components of a business plan

7. Develop the various components of a business plan.

8. Carry out a market research of their target market.

9. Develop a bankable business plan.

Target Audience

The course is designed for secondary/high school students, college graduates interested in developing businesses in the agriculture sector and becoming agribusiness with a special emphasis on youth and women. The curriculum emphasizes the important role of developing business plans to guide their operations.