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Objectives of the virtual meeting in Rwanda

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Objectives of the virtual meeting in Rwanda

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I.   Introduce IFAD's approach to working with rural youth at the grassroots level and devise an Alliance of Rural Youth Organisations for Rwanda.

II.   To collaborate in the design of a strategy for the mobilization of rural grassroots youth and the implementation of an electronic platform that facilitates effective communication between members of the Alliance of Rural Youth Organizations for Rwanda.

III.  To collaborate in the design of a plan to strengthen youth organizations in Colombia, their capacities for networking, participation in public and private investments and the advocacy for inclusive public policies.

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The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) understands that the participation of rural youth is fundamental to sustainable rural transformation and in the last decade has been developing the capacities, technologies and investments that build up their effective inclusion. Addressing the needs and expectations of rural youth is a corporate priority, but they often lack the capital and channels to influence decision-making that affects their lives. They are generally excluded from local, national, and international governance processes because they are more isolated, disconnected, and often belong to minorities.

In this scenario, IFAD has decided to promote grassroots work, which breaks with the vertical, top-down approach and connects the voice of youth with affective actions for development. This approach seeks to explore, facilitate, and promote new opportunities for close and systematic collaboration among rural youth at the grassroots level, which is always more difficult to achieve, with local, national, and international youth organizations.

One of the key actions promoted by IFAD is then the Country Rural Youth Alliances.

The Alliances are an inclusive and democratic mechanism to increase the quality of rural youth participation in IFAD-funded projects, to bring together and amplify their diverse voices, and to inform the strategic decisions of governments and IFAD itself. Among other functions, the Alliances could serve the following purposes:

1.     Active advisory role for government and IFAD on their country strategies, opportunities, and practical solutions to the challenges of rural youth. Not only be a user of IFAD-funded projects but to advance its status as a strategic partner during the design of country strategies and operations, a service provider to projects, and a champion in the mobilization campaigns.

2.     Consultative role among rural youth to improve the effectiveness and impact of government and IFAD investments and projects in favor of rural grassroots youth Including participation in monitoring and evaluation exercises of project effectiveness in generating employment and empowering rural youth.

3.     Lobbying function between local and national institutions and those at the regional and global level. Representing the interests of rural youth in the public agenda, policy design and development investments, sensitizing decision makers to the needs and aspirations of rural youth at the grassroots level.

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Who participates in the virtual meeting?

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Who participates in the virtual meeting?

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@AGRIWIN. Agriculture with Innovation Company Ltd.

@BNML. Baho Nanjye Mbeho Company Ltd.

@Benelliot Farming Company Ltd.

@FESY. Friends Effort to Support Youth.

@Mahwi Tech

@RDI. Rural Development Initiative

@RARICO. Rwanda Animal Resources Improvement Cooperative.

@RASO. Rwanda Animal Scientist Organization.

@YPARD. Rwanda Young Professional for Agriculture Development.

@RYAF. Rwanda Youth in Agribusiness Forum.

@SAIC. Stewardship Agribusiness Incubation Center.

@YEAN.Youth Engagement in Agriculture Network.

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The meeting will be held via Zoom on Tuesday, December 15 between 17:00 and 20:00 hours in Kigali. The respective invitations have been sent to the directors.

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The meeting will be chaired by IFAD's Rural Youth Team and facilitated by PROCASUR.

For more information please write to María José Araya, mjaraya@procasur.org .

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The International Fund for Agricultural Development

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The International Fund for Agricultural Development

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The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized agency of the United Nations dedicated to eradicating poverty and hunger in the rural areas of developing countries.

Through low-interest loans and grants, IFAD develops and finances programmes and projects that are integrated into national systems and respond to the needs, priorities and problems identified by the rural poor themselves.

IFAD addresses the problem of rural poverty not only as a lender, but also as an advocate for women and young people, small farmers, pastoralists, fisherfolk, landless workers, artisans and members of indigenous communities who represent 75 percent of the 1.5 billion people living in extreme poverty worldwide.

IFAD works with governments, bilateral and multilateral donors, non-governmental organizations, project participants and other partners to eradicate the causes of rural poverty. The Fund acts as a catalyst for economic resources and knowledge, bringing together different partners and promoting policies that enable the rural poor to increase agricultural productivity and seek new sources of non-farm income.

IFAD-funded projects and programmes help improve the access of poor rural communities to financial services, markets, technology, land and other productive resources.

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A very important background is IFAD's 'Rural Youth Action Plan 2018' and even more recently, the 'Position Paper on IFAD's Engagement with Youth: An approach to connect young people's views with action'.

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Under the slogan Our Future is Here, IFAD and PROCASUR have launched a series of campaigns to mobilize rural youth at the grassroots level, including regional and global face-to-face and virtual meetings, with young people from over 50 countries on five continents!

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The IFAD's 2019 Rural Development Report puts rural youth at the centre of sustainable rural transformation

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In Rwanda, IFAD is working to reduce poverty by empowering poor rural men and women to participate in transforming the agriculture sector and in rural development, and by reducing their vulnerability to climate change.

The country strategic opportunities programme in Rwanda (2013-2018) is aligned with the government's Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy II and the Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture III.

The IFAD country strategic opportunities programme has four main objectives, focused on:

Sustainably increasing agricultural productivity through management of natural resources and investment in physical and social capital, including scaled-up agricultural intensification;

Developing climate-resilient export value chains, post-harvesting processes and agribusiness to increase market outlets;

Adding value to agricultural produce and generating employment in rural areas; and

Improving the nutritional status of poor rural people and vulnerable groups.

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Rwanda: Reducing Food Loss in a Changing Climate

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Rwanda: Reducing Food Loss in a Changing Climate

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Rwanda: Reducing Food Loss in a Changing Climate

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The Real Groundbreakers: Claudine from Rwanda

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The Real Groundbreakers: Claudine from Rwanda

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The Real Groundbreakers: Claudine from Rwanda

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IFAD in the thousand hills of Rwanda: Transforming agriculture into business 

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IFAD in the thousand hills of Rwanda: Transforming agriculture into business 

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Rural youth and the COVID-19: Regional Meetings inLatin America and the Caribbean, Africa and Asia

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Rural youth and the COVID-19: Regional Meetings inLatin America and the Caribbean, Africa and Asia

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Empowering rural young women and men to shape the rural economies of tomorrow 2019-2021RURAL

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Background on IFAD's work with rural youth

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Background on IFAD's work with rural youth

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Rural Youth Action Plan 2019-2021

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Virtual Meeting: "Connecting Rural: Youth Voices to Action"

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Virtual Meeting: "Connecting Rural: Youth Voices to Action"