Ep: 1 How to integrate young people into agriculture in Kenya with Jeremiah Rogito
“For any business person, you cannot venture into a business that you have absolutely no idea about.
It's important for you to have an idea of what you really want to venture into. Venturing into agriculture with absolutely no knowledge is going to be very tricky, not just agriculture, but any business.”
LINKS MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE
Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute
CONNECT WITH OUR GUEST
Twitter; https://twitter.com/rogito_jeremy
Email; jeremyrogito@gmail.com
Linkedin; https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremiah-rogito-pmp-30484b94/?originalSubdomain=ke
Strathmore Business School; https://sbs.strathmore.edu/
Egerton University; https://egerton.ac.ke
African Youth ChangeMakers Initiative; https://africachangemakers.org
GIZ; https://www.giz.de/en/worldwide/40726.html
SNV as a project advisor for Veggies 4 Planet and People Project; https://snv.org/project/veggies-4-planet-and-people
Research paper on youth involvement in agriculture; https://are-journal.com/are/article/view/298
The high cost of food production discourages young farmers from venturing into agriculture. Jeremiah shares practical advice on how to succeed in agribusiness as a young farmer.
- Start with a short season crop
- Always conduct a profit margin analysis.
- Running your farm business in an honest manner guarantees customer retention and sustainability ensuring you remain in business for a long time.
- Reduce your risks by understanding the market that you are targeting.
- Incorporate a post-harvest management strategy through value addition to reduce produce losses
- Research and use simple farming innovations - boost production, save time, save money, and enjoy higher profits
- The 4Ds of agricultural success
- For institutions working young people in agriculture, prioritize agricultural programs that have simple value chain entry requirements to reduce barriers to entry and for a more effective engagement with them.
Time Stamps
Time Stamps
[00:00 – 00:41) Intro
[01:34 – 04:22] Jeremiah’s childhood experiences motivated him to pursue a career in agriculture
[04:24 –05:23] It is important to have both technical production and business skills as a farmer because they go hand in hand. Acquiring both skills is important as it will both improve farm productivity and profitability.
[05:23- 06:37] Ethics in agribusiness - Run your farm business in an honest manner. This guarantees customer retention and sustainability ensuring you remain in business for a long time.
[06:38 - 07:17] It is risky to venture into agriculture without any knowledge of the agricultural activity that you wish to pursue. Jeremiah offers advice on how to go about this predicament.
[07:19 – 20:01] Jeremiah shares why young people are not fully participating in agriculture. He discusses the findings of his research work on youth and agribusiness. He also reflects on the extensive work that he has done in integrating the youth into various agricultural value chains.
[20:02: – 23:07] Post Harvest Management and value addition of indigenous vegetables - Challenges and opportunities
[23:07 – 28:53] From subsistence farming to commercial farming
[28:53 – 32:13] Final Thoughts - The 4Ds of agricultural success
[32:13 – 32:50] Outro
