6th all Africa conference on animal agriculture – youth session announcement

In Nairobi, in October (27-30), the All Africa Society for Animal Production (AASAP) in conjunction with the Animal Production Society of Kenya (APSK) and the Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (MoALF) will hold its biannual conference with the theme “Africa’s Animal Agriculture: Macro-trends and future opportunities”.

The conference will provide an opportunity for multi-disciplinary players within and outside the African continent to exchange ideas on key issues around the five themes and seek ways to address associated challenges while harnessing the opportunities such challenges present for the Animal agriculture sector in the continent. In particular, The Youth and Future of Animal Agriculture will be a core thematic area of the conference.

The Youth session is set against the back drop that, Sub-Saharan Africa has the world’s youngest population and is home to over 200 million young people. Two out of three inhabitants are under the age of 25 years and 44% of its population is below the age of 15. About 70% of the youth reside in rural areas and those that are employed work primarily in the agricultural sector, where they account for 65% of the labour force. Young African men and women are critical to the development of agriculture and for consolidating efforts to attain food and nutrition security in the continent. They are the future farmers, policy makers, leaders, and researchers as well as the future drivers of Africa’s socio-economic and technological development!

The Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) and Dr Joram Mwacharo of The International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) have partnered to convene The Youth Session on 28th October 2014 during the 6th All African Conference on Animal Agriculture. Through this session we hope to drive the debate away from questions such as “How can farming be made more attractive to young people?” toward a broader analysis of the opportunities and challenges for different categories of young people in animal agriculture. Such an analysis will take account of changes not only in food production, but also in processing (value addition) and transformation, marketing, retail, governance, information technology etc. We also intend to have a question and answer session involving three to four panelists that will be followed by an open discussion.

Participants if you are:

• Involved in the animal agriculture (dairy, beef, swine, small ruminant, poultry, the horse industry, aquaculture, wildlife, veterinary medicine, livestock business and marketing, animal welfare and behavior, animal nutrition science, animal reproduction science, or genetics).
• Involved in the business, banking and information technology sector
• 15–35 years of age OR older and working with the youth.
• Someone with a success story related to youth involvement in animal agriculture

An engaging and inspiring speaker and leader who is passionate about youth issues.

Then you are the person needed for the Youth Session.

To participate/apply, please send us a concise abstract of 250 words maximum, written in English. Authors may submit articles based on practical experiences, research findings, case reports/studies, retrospective studies or expressing interest to participate in exhibitions or practical demonstrations within the realms of the Youth Session Theme - Animal Agriculture: The next frontier for the youth in Africa. Authors are requested to indicate their preference for oral or poster presentation. Selected papers will be published in a special journal issue of the East African Agricultural and Forestry Journal (EAAFJ) hosted by the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI).

Please send your abstracts/applications to Joram.Mwacharo@nottingham.ac.uk by May 16th, 2014, highlighting in the email subject line your interest to participate in the AACAA Youth Session. Potential speakers will be put forward to a selection committee and will be notified by June 1st, 2014. The selection of participants will take into account continental, regional, country and gender balance.

Read more on the conference website

For more information please visit the Platform for African European Partnership on Agricultural Research for Development (PAEPARD) website

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For more information contact:

FANRPAN: Sithembile Mwamakamba: sndema@fanrpan.org
Tshilidzi Madzivhandila: TMadzivhandila@fanrpan.org
Joram Mwacharo: Joram.Mwacharo@nottingham.ac.uk

Call for Applications: Global Food Security Symposium 2014 Next Generation Delegation

The Chicago Council on Global Affairs is now accepting applications from students to participate in the Global Food Security Symposium 2014 Next Generation Delegation.

ABOUT THE DELEGATION

Convened annually by The Chicago Council, the Global Food Security Symposium discusses the US government and international community’s progress on addressing global food and nutrition security.

The Next Generation Delegation program was launched in 2013 to provide an opportunity for promising students to engage in symposium discussions and to interact with policy, civil society, and business leaders working on agriculture, food, and nutrition issues.

The Global Food Security Symposium 2014 will focus on adapting food and nutrition systems to climate change. It will be held May 22, 2014, in Washington, DC.

DELEGATE OPPORTUNITIES

Delegates will have the opportunity to:

• Attend the symposium.
• Participate in symposium discussions via social media.
• Interact with symposium speakers and senior attendees in private forums.
• Connect with other outstanding students planning careers in the global agriculture, food, and nutrition sectors.

DELEGATE RESPONSIBILITIES

Delegates are expected to:

• Attend all symposium-related events in Washington, DC, from May 21-22, 2014. The Chicago Council will cover airfare, accommodations, and meal expenses.
• Describe their research and career aspirations related to global agriculture, food, and nutrition issues through a posting on The Chicago Council’s Global Food for Thought blog.
• Participate in a video interview to be filmed the day of the symposium.

DELEGATE CRITERIA

Students must be at the graduate or advanced undergraduate (third or fourth year) level studying agriculture and food policy; public policy or administration; agricultural science; nutrition; or other science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines and must plan to enter the agriculture and food sector upon graduation. International students and students studying at universities outside of the United States are strongly encouraged to apply.

TO APPLY

Interested applicants should submit the following to CaSandra Carter at ccarter@thechicagocouncil.org with the subject line "2014 Next Generation Delegation":

• Curriculum Vitae
• A letter of recommendation from a professor or employer
• An essay explaining their interest in the program (no more than 500 words)
• A recent headshot (in JPG or PDF format)

The deadline for applications is March 21, 2014. Please note incomplete applications will not be considered.

The Chicago Council on Global Affairs Website