The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, has generated more than 90,000 employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for Nigerian youths, women, and persons with disabilities over five years through the Innovative Youth in Agriculture (I-Youth) initiative.
Launched in 2020, I-Youth equips young people aged 15–35 with technical, entrepreneurial, and business skills, enabling them to establish agribusinesses or secure dignified employment within Nigeria’s agrifood system. The program was implemented in Kano, Kaduna, Lagos, Jigawa, and Adamawa states, with a strong focus on inclusion.
At the Phase I close-out ceremony, IITA Director-General and CGIAR Regional Director for Continental Africa, Dr. Simeon Ehui, highlighted the transformative impact of investing in youth. “I-Youth demonstrates what happens when vision, partnership, and opportunity converge. When young people are given skills, mentorship, and access to markets, they do not just seek jobs; they create them,” he said.
Dr. Ehui credited the initiative’s success to partnerships with the Mastercard Foundation, state governments, private sector actors, training institutions, and community leaders. To date, the collaboration has led to the establishment of 36,053 youth-led agribusinesses, alongside agribusiness parks, innovation hubs, and cooperative clusters.
Ms. Rosy Fynn, Country Director of the Mastercard Foundation in Nigeria, said I-Youth has been instrumental in advancing the Foundation’s Young Africa Works strategy. “The numbers reached represent real lives transformed and stronger communities,” she said, highlighting the Start Them Early Programme (STEP), which has enabled secondary school students and their families to establish over 5,900 home-grown agribusiness ventures.
Participants also shared stories of impact. Olumide Garuba from Lagos State credited I-Youth for helping him formalise his agribusiness and employ other youths, while Mariam Abass from Kaduna State said the program empowered her to rebuild her poultry business, overcome gender barriers, and support other women in her community.
Panel discussions at the event underscored the importance of access to finance, stronger market linkages, and sustained post-training support, particularly for women and persons with disabilities.
As Phase I concludes, stakeholders reaffirmed their commitment to sustaining and scaling the most impactful elements of the I-Youth model. Lessons from Nigeria are already informing similar initiatives in Sierra Leone and Liberia, demonstrating I-Youth’s growing regional influence and its potential to transform agribusiness across Africa.
