The Agri-Accelerator pilot in the Gambia concludes with the pitching of projects by young agri-entrepreneurs
Under the title “Empowering youth for responsible agrifood systems transformation,” representatives from Gambian institutions, investment ecosystem actors and UN agencies gathered on July 24th at Alliance Française de Banjul to hear the pitches of 9 young agri-entrepreneurs who benefited from the FAO Agri-accelerator pilot project in The Gambia. The event followed a pitching session organized at the Holistic Training Centre in Ballingho, which featured other 10 entrepreneurs.
Empowering youth to improve agrifood systems in The Gambia
The Agri-accelerator is a FAO-designed innovative approach to catalyze the expansion of viable, sustainable agribusinesses rooted in local communities, thanks to technical support and alignment with the CFS Principles for Responsible Investment in Agriculture and Food Systems.
In The Gambia, the project has been funded by the German Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity. It has been implemented by FAO in partnership with Gambia Tech, Alliance Française de Banjul, Rural Development Organization, Sabab Lou Foundation, and the Gambian Ministry of Agriculture.
“Addressing food security, transforming food systems, and tackling unemployment and migration all depend on making the agrifood sector more attractive to young people,” reminded Mr Mustapha Ceesay, Assistant FAO Representative in The Gambia, during his opening remarks.
Mr Klaus Botzet, German Ambassador to The Gambia, hailed the efforts of the Gambian Government to promote agricultural entrepreneurship among youth to “reduce the reliability of food imports from foreign countries and build a strong food supply in the country.” Adding a message to the young agri-entrepreneurs present in the room: “Your country needs you so be courageous and proud of what you are doing.”
Mr Lamin Darboe, Deputy Director General for Administration at the Gambian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Security spoke in a similar vein, praising entrepreneurs as “innovators, social transformers and actors for inclusive growth.” He also highlighted the importance of strengthening entrepreneurship training that addresses social and environmental challenges to “mitigate the impacts of climate change, keep the talent of our youth and avoid distress migration.”
The pitching by young agri-entrepreneurs: nerves, pride and talent
After the opening remarks and an overview of the project highlights, the presenters invited the youth to do their 7-minute pitches. In front of them were over 60 participants and the selection committee (composed by national experts from different institutions), charged with assessing the best 5 projects. The top 3 received a symbolic financial incentive from the French Embassy.
Apart from this support, in the room were representatives of institutions such as The Gambian Angel Investors Network (GAIN), the Gambian Youth Chamber of Commerce and other investment actors so it was an opportunity for the entrepreneurs to gain visibility.
Fatou Nanno Gibba was one of the first pitchers. She presented the main features of her poultry and vegetable business with security and confidence. “I want to address the protein deficiency that is widespread in rural Gambia by providing high quality meat and eggs,” she asserted. Indeed, the cornerstone of responsible investment projects is that they seek to contribute to better food security and nutrition, among other development issues.
With his livestock breeding farm, entrepreneur Borra Barry seeks to address another important challenge of the Gambian food system: the high reliability on imported livestock. In parallel, he produces maize for animal feeding, supplying other entrepreneurs. Since 2024, he participates in a governmental initiative to support agricultural value chain development and to move from subsistence to more market-oriented agriculture.
An university graduate specialized in animal health, Borra recounted: “Many people in The Gambia think that agriculture is a job for the rural poor who have no other opportunity. I want to contribute to changing this mindset through my work and professionalism and improve food security in The Gambia.”
One by one, the 9 agri-entrepreneurs pitched their projects and explained their ideas to scale them up, pointing at how they would use additional funds. At the end, they had to respond to the selection committee inquisitive questions: How do you plan to mitigate risks related to your business? How do you generate revenue daily on your farm? etc.
The candidates best rated by the selection committee were Samba Faye, Bora Barry, Modou Jallow, Mamadjang Jalloh and Fatou Nanno Gibba. Beyond that, the participation in the Agri-accelerator was a learning experience for all of them. “Being here side by side with entrepreneurs more experienced than myself like Samba and seeing that he is thriving gives me courage and hope,” recounted Fatou. “He is the proof that youth don’t have to leave the country to be successful,” she added.
All candidates have been invited to participate in further capacity development on investment skills, pitching and financial literacy which will be organized by FAO in the coming weeks.
The event was also an opportunity to celebrate the results of this 6-months project, which thanks to the collective efforts of all actors involved, are significant. The project leaves behind an active network of 19 business coaches certified in the responsible agricultural investment (RAI) approach and methodology and 19 young agri-entrepreneurs with strengthened skills.
“The coaches that have been certified in the RAI methodology, as well as the youth who have undergone the coaching process, are an invaluable asset for The Gambia, and are ready to support sustainable development in practice,” said Emma Jessie McGhie, Programme Officer of FAO, who coordinated the training and coaching process. “Development and government partners are encouraged to get in contact and involve them in any upcoming initiative,” she added.
In this regard, the event was an opportunity to share information on upcoming programmes to support the youth, such as the UNDP-led UNIPOD Agritech, an initiative that seeks to support youth agri-entrepreneurs scale up their projects.
In closing the event, Abdou Karim Badjie, the Assistant Project Manager of Gambia Tech, encouraged further collaboration among the actors present in the room: “Improving the ecosystem for responsible agricultural investment in The Gambia requires the collective efforts of all stakeholders because each actor brings unique resources, knowledge, and influence that are essential for sustainable progress,” he said.
For more information:
Agri-accelerator website: https://www.fao.org/in-action/responsible-agricultural-investments/agri-accelerator20/en/
Responsible agricultural investment methodology: Promoting responsible agricultural enterprises - Guide for business coaches and advisors supporting young agri-entrepreneurs with responsible agricultural investment projects