The Young Innovators Awards were held over the weekend with three outstanding agripreneurs honoured at the Ghana Grows AgroFusion Festival. Mildred Akotia, CEO of Akwaaba Foods; Sylvester Abdul Razak of Sly Farms; and Audrey Forson of Tekura Designs emerging as the top three winners for their outstanding achievements in the agriculture, agribusiness, and A-TVET sectors.

Each of them was given a citation, a plaque and a cheque for GH¢15,000 as their prize. They will also go on an all-expenses-paid trip to Kenya to meet other agripreneurs and exchange ideas about best practices and possible collaborations.

Seven other award winners who were celebrated for their feats on the night included Edna Frimpong, the Shoemakergurl; Edna Vorsah of Herb Garden; Emmanuel Twene of QET Organic Farms Limited; Martha Opoku of Deahenkan Foods Limited; Munkaila Mohammed of DolcaFresh Fruit Juice; Nikki Okrah of Chaku Foods; and Elselund Ewudzie Sampson of Big Samps Market. A special award was given to KEAD, a project by students of Aburi Girls Robotics Club.

The awards were presented in Koforidua at the just ended Ghana Grows AgroFusion Festival, a platform designed to recognize, celebrate and project the efforts of young innovators in Agribusiness and Agriculture Technical Vocational Education and Training (ATVET) sectors with a keen focus on young women and persons with disability.

In a keynote address at the event, Rica Rwigamba, Country Director for Mastercard Foundation in Ghana, emphasized the focus of the Ghana Grows Programme on empowering young entrepreneurs and fostering connections with key industry players in the Agric and ATVET sectors.

She encouraged participants to engage with industry leaders and explore opportunities to enhance their ventures. “I celebrate the role of young people in transforming the agriculture sector, highlighting their innovations featured in the Ghana Grows publication Changing Narratives which was launched at this event.”

Ms. Rwigamba further urged participants to address challenges like climate change and continue driving the growth of Agriculture and ATVET across Africa. “I hope your time spent at this summit and the interaction with various ecosystem actors has been an insightful and empowering experience,” she added.

It was an outstanding moment at the Ghana Grows AgroFusion Festival to witness the launch of a book entitled, ‘Changing Narratives’, which features a compilation of 200 impact stories of young entrepreneurs in all sixteen regions of Ghana who are making strides in the areas of Agriculture, Agribusiness and A-TVET.

The summit held at the festival included coaching sessions led by resource persons and key industry players including the Federation of Associations of Ghanaian Exporters (FAGE) and the Food and Drugs Authority who equipped participants with valuable information on how to improve their personal skills and maximise opportunities to achieve the successes they envision.

The Executive Director of the Springboard Road Show Foundation, Mrs. Comfort Ocran, expressed her profound gratitude to the Mastercard Foundation for their dedication to the young people of the continent. “The young people on the Ghana Grows programme couldn’t have achieved these significant feats without the unyielding commitment of the Mastercard Foundation. The commitment of our partner coupled with the hard work of our beneficiaries inspires us at Springboard to remain steadfast in our promise to them to ignite young dreams, one person at a time,” Mrs. Ocran stressed.

In her acceptance remarks, gleeful Mildred Akotia stressed that, “It hasn’t been an easy journey. Anyone who knows my story can attest to the fact that it has been one of resilience and a passionate desire to make a difference and today we are all witnesses that hard work truly pays.”

Longue Sylvester Abdul Razak of Sly Farms was grateful that his efforts at planting 50 acres of maize, groundnuts, soybeans and yam in the Wa East and West districts had come to the attention of the Ghana Grows Programme.

Audrey Forson, Managing Director of Tekura Designs, urged more young women to explore opportunities in the technical and vocational sectors. She pledged to use her recent election as President of the Interior Designers and Decorators Association Ghana (IDDG) to mentor more young women into the sector.

The second edition of the AgroFusion festival was a showcase of the vibrant spirit of innovation within Ghana’s agricultural sector and a testament to the transformative power of collaboration and mentoring. Since its inception last year, the AgroFusion Festival has been the hub for merging a series of events, including summits, exhibitions, book launches, and awards ceremonies celebrating young innovators in Agribusiness and Agriculture Technical Vocational Education and Training (ATVET).

The two-day Festival also featured nights of entertainment with music artists including Dope Nation, Lasmid, Kwame Eugene, Byno Ayoni, Meraki Arts, Adelaide the Seer and a host of other performers treating the audience to great music and art.

Undoubtedly, the festival may have wrapped up, but the enthusiasm and energy generated can be the driving force for growth and innovation in the agricultural sector, ensuring a bright future for Ghanaian agriculture and entrepreneurship and ensure that Ghana grows indeed.

The Ghana Grows Programme is a collaboration between Mastercard Foundation and Springboard Road Show Foundation with the support of over 100 partners and collaborators. It is a youth-led initiative aimed at inspiring and supporting young people to discover and pursue decent and fulfilling jobs in Agriculture, Agribusiness, and the Agric Technical, and Vocational Skills sectors.