Prolinnova at Workshop on Mobilising Youth in CGIAR Research Programs

The International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the African Development Bank and the CGIAR Consortium organised a workshop on 8-9 September 2015 in Montpellier, France, on “Mobilizing Youth within Phase 2 CGIAR Research Programs (CRPs)”. One member of the Prolinnova International Secretariat, Ingrid Flink, took part in this meeting, representing both theProlinnova network and the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), which now hosts the Prolinnova International Secretariat.

With growing numbers of disenfranchised youth around the world and a strong focus on finding opportunities for their engagement and employment, CGIAR is seeking ways to approach the topic and to plan appropriate activities, especially through its second generation of research programmes. This workshop aimed to:

  1. Define the key issues to be addressed and to identify good approaches to promoting youth engagement, employment and enterprise that can be integrated into CGIAR work
  2. Through learning from internal and external experiences and ideas, define realistic outcomes, priorities and activities as well as identify necessary partnerships.

The workshop brought together 41 participants from CGIAR and non-CGIAR institutes, amongst others, youth organisationssuch as Mkulima Young, Global Youth Innovation Network (GYIN), Young Professional in Agricultural Research and Development (YPARD) and IITA Agripreneurs; SNV; AgriProFocus (APF); CTA; CIRAD; International Water Management Institute (IWMI); Institute of Development Studies (IDS); Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and University of Nairobi; and CGIAR centersICARDA, Bioversity, ICRAF, CIMMYT and CIAT-CCAFS.

The discussions during the meeting were often a mix of focus on research and capacity building. Finally,  the idea was raised to start up a research platform and a capacity-building platform within CGIAR for youth and agriculture, possibly in combination with other existing CGIAR structures. Clear interest in a research agenda was expressed by workshop participants from CIMMYT, CIP, IDS, CIRAD, ICARDA and others, while it was thought that NGOs could play a role in conducting complementary research to clarify areas of intervention and to assist with M&E design.  

The summary of the workshop can be read here.

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