The Head of the State House Investors Protection Unit (SHIPU), Col. Edith Nakalema, has lauded Youth Platform Africa (YPA) for directly investing in agriculture.

In her address delivered to the leadership of the YPA in a meeting convened at SHIPU offices located plot 51B along Lumumba Avenue, Nakasero in Nakasero on February 7, 2024, Col. Nakalema noted that initiatives such as those undertaken by the YPA were not only creating employment for other youth but also contributing to the development of the country and therefore encouraged that more youth be attracted to join agriculture.

"I am glad you have an agronomist [amongst yourselves] because that is an area that many youth avoid," Col. Nakalema said and added, "that tells how focused you are. My prayer is that you encourage everyone to have an attachment to agriculture."

It was at the same meeting that Col. Nakalema encouraged them to jointly support and develop each other, as this is a key ingredient in fast-paced and constructive growth. She also rallied the youth to expand their reach to all other parts of the country and realize regional development.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of YPA, Mr. Obed Ben, pledged to lead his colleagues in a drive to embrace agribusiness in Uganda.

"Our plea is that the government gives us the opportunity to teach more youth to come together to fight poverty and ignorance," Mr. Obed stated.

The YPA was born in 2008 in present-day Gomba District, where a team of youth passionate about agriculture combined efforts to, among others, fight poverty, tackle unemployment, and bolster development using agriculture as the key driver of the desired change.

It is against this backdrop that YPA mobilized resources amongst themselves to raise initial capital. The resources were used to procure land, goats, and other requisite tools to enable them to embark on agribusiness.

Since then, YPA has grown to a total of 3,344 members.

Mr. Obed revealed that YPA has also created a charity unit that is meant to support financially constrained people to attend school. According to Mr. Obed, a total of 300 learners are in primary, 300 are in secondary, and 150 are at the tertiary or university level.