YOUNG AGENTS IN CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE (YACA)

Changemaker: Richard Kachungu

Country of Implementation: Zambia

Youth in the Chinsali district of Muchinga province in Zambia lack platforms to access information on sustainable agriculture practices. Due to this, they are unable to mitigate and adapt to climate change. To respond to this, Richard Kachungu, through his Organization Young Emerging Farmers Initiative (YEFI), designed a project to provide youth in agriculture in Chinsali district with technical skills to be able to engage in sustainable agriculture and conserve their environments. The project will take place from December 2020 to January 2021 in Chinsali district, targeting young people from 15 to 35 years old. It will seek to contribute towards the reduction of poverty among youths and conserve the environment through capacity building in the Chinsali and Lundazi districts. It will empower young people as Agents of Change in their communities through the promotion of climate-smart agriculture (CSA), and it will hold leaders accountable with regards to CSA. The young people will be encouraged to engage their local authorities and other relevant stakeholders in the province and district.

The project will strengthen the capacity of the youth to engage in sustainable agriculture and create awareness about good natural resource management and climate change. The project will create a radio platform for young people to engage in discussion and debate with relevant stakeholders around issues of access to resources. The project will target 50 direct beneficiaries in the Chinsali district and plant about 50 trees in the district. The project will also strengthen the operations of the existing enterprise through the provision of seed funds.