Two visionary agripreneurs clinched top honours in the fifth annual GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition Finals held at the Africa Food Systems Forum Summit 2023. During an exciting Youth Town Hall event chaired by H.E. President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania, Generation Africa awarded two grand prizes of $50,000 to Ms Hasina Andriatsitohaina, Founder and CEO of Mad’Arom in Madagascar, and Mr Ikenna Nzewi, co-Founder and CEO of Releaf Africa in Nigeria.
During her address, H.E. Dr. Suluhu emphasized the importance of involving the youth in Africa’s Food Systems transformation. “As youth form a large segment of the African population, they have to raise their voice in matters that affect their lives. Our gathering here at the (AGRF) Youth Townhall, gives us an exclusive opportunity to listen to them (the youth). It is very important to hear, their concerns, challenges and hopes so as to enrich our discussion as we are charting the way to improve agribusiness for the young population.”
Also, four African youth were awarded the GoGettaz Impact Award announced at the closing Youth Innovation Awards Celebration the following day. Each Impact Award winner received a US$2,500 prize. Recognising the extraordinary contributions of all twelve GoGettaz young entrepreneurs who travelled to Tanzania to compete in the live pitch contest from across the continent, Generation Africa partner USAID donated a further US$1,000 to each of the remaining six finalists. All Gogettaz winners were lauded for their entrepreneurial vision, diligent preparation, expertly crafted on-stage pitches, and the innovative new businesses they’ve each launched in Africa’s agrifood sector.
“This year’s summit theme is ‘Recover, Regenerate, Act: Africa’s Solutions to Food Systems Transformation.’ Far from being a distant hope, these GoGettaz have demonstrated to everyone at the Summit that they are Africa’s solutions,” said Dr Agnes Kalibata, President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). “I hope the investors were paying attention because I can clearly see how some of these businesses have the potential to impact millions of lives across the continent in the next decade.”
This years’ GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition campaign reached almost 7 million people, bringing half a million visitors to the Generation Africa website and GoGettaz community platform. This year, the annual competition received completed applications from 43 African countries, with 9 countries represented in the Top 12 finanlsits. Application data also shows an increase in female applicants this year. This is an encouraging shift in an industry that is perceived as male dominated, while the reality of African food production is very much in the hands of women small-holder farmers.
Strive Masiyiwa, Chair Emeritus of AGRA and Generation Africa founding member, expressed his admiration for the innovative spirit of all the young entrepreneurs taking part at this year’s AGRF Summit: “Our continent’s young agripreneurs are a testament to Africa’s innovative vision in action. I salute all our entrepreneurs, hailing from across Africa. The young men and women who competed in the live pitch competitions at the AGRF Summit this year are all winners for our continent, whether they received a prize on stage or not. We must continue to celebrate and support these amazing young people, most of whom designed innovative technology solutions to tackle both food system and environmental challenges while creating new businesses and jobs. Generation Africa’s agripreneurs are leading the transformative change that needs to happen across Africa’s agrifood sector.”
Generation Africa founding member Svein Tore Holsether, President and CEO of Yara International, emphasized the urgency of youth efforts in food systems transformation and the essential role of young entrepreneurs, stating, “In the face of mounting food security challenges, it is imperative to revolutionize our food systems. Young entrepreneurs are the torchbearers of sustainable solutions. We are proud to support their endeavours in reshaping the future of food.”
Amath Pathe Sene, Managing Director of the Africa Food Systems Forum, underscored the significance of amplifying youth-led businesses at the AGRF Summit, “We bring together policymakers and industry leaders, so conversations can evolve into actionable solutions. Youth-led businesses like these impressive GoGettaz finalists belong in the conversation because their innovative ideas are pivotal to shaping the future food system.”
Dickson Naftali, Head of Generation Africa, called on the youth to follow the example set by the GoGettaz agripreneurs, “If you want to make a real difference, to help people and build a healthier planet, the agrifood industry is where your energy will find purpose. The truth about our future is that we need an African food system that is African-owned and African-led. And we want to reach as many young Africans as we can with this message.”
Along with online coaching, the twelve finalists received two days of in-person pitch training at the Summit. Additional networking sessions and facilitated participation in the AGRF Agribusiness Deal Room gave the youth-led businesses an opportunity to connect with future partners, investors, and collaborators.
With the conclusion of the Africa Food Systems Summit, the GoGettaz Agripreneur Prize Competition is also completed for the year. Applications for 2024 will open again in April/May next year. The industry-leading partners and sponsors of Generation Africa are proud of the exceptional innovation, dedication, and leadership displayed by all the young entrepreneurs who participated this year throughout the process. Coming into focus for the rest of 2023 are mentorship programmes, such as the Generation Africa Fellowship Programme, and the important work of reshaping national policies for better support of youth and women in agriculture. The new Generation Africa Online Academy was also launched at the Summit this week, in an exciting partnership with Microsoft which designed the platform.
