Connecting Local Agroecology Voices to National Dialogue
Written by Nweze Emmanuel Obinna Abuja, Nigeria – July 2025
EcoSteward Foundation, under the auspices of the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), proudly participated in the recently launched Youth Engagement in Food Systems Mapping Report, unveiled at the inaugural Youth in Food Systems Convening held in Abuja. The event brought together policymakers, civil society, and over 100 youth representatives to discuss the central role of young people in transforming Nigeria’s food systems.
Organized by the National Food Systems Task Team, the convening themed “Empowering the Future: Unleashing Youth Potential for Resilient and Sustainable Food Systems” showcased the findings of Nigeria’s first comprehensive youth food systems report. The mapping captured insights from over 6,000 young Nigerians working across agriculture, processing, food innovation, climate advocacy, and community organizing.
“This report marks a turning point for youth-led food systems change in Nigeria,” said Azeez Salawu, National Youth Lead of the UN Food Systems Summit Nigeria team.
🌾 Why It Matters to Our Work
For EcoSteward Foundation, this engagement directly supports our ongoing initiative:
“Connecting Young Agroecologists and Climate Advocates for Transformative Food Systems.”
Our involvement ensured that agroecological youth voices and community-level innovations were represented in the national conversation. We contributed practical data and ideas from young farmers and climate advocates in crossriver and surrounding states, spotlighting solutions rooted in ecological farming, soil regeneration, and sustainable land use.
🔍 Relevance to Our Current Project
The mapping exercise provides valuable input to our project by:
- Highlighting common barriers faced by young agroecologists such as access to land, finance, and infrastructure;
- Informing our capacity-building efforts with real-world experiences and gaps identified in the report;
- Reinforcing the urgency of connecting youth, both in advocacy and practice, for coordinated climate and food justice action;
- Supporting our policy engagement goals, especially at the local and state government level.
🌍 Looking Ahead
This national platform strengthens our commitment to building a resilient, youth-led agroecology movement in Nigeria. As we continue implementing our project, we will leverage insights from the youth mapping report to design more responsive mentorship, advocacy, and policy engagement pathways.
We thank AFSA and the Food Systems Task Team for the opportunity to contribute to this milestone effort. Together, we are sowing the seeds of transformation from the ground up
📣 Stay Connected
Follow our project updates at [EcoSteward Foundation’s Website]
Email: [info@ecostewardafrica.org] | Social Media: X: @ecosteward1
Hashtags: #Agroecology4Nigeria #YouthInFoodSystems #ClimateJusticeNow